Cameroon is African champion, and the party has not stopped since the final whistle. The Indomitable Lionesses beat debutants Malawi 3-0 in Rabat on Sunday, August 16, to win their first-ever Women’s Africa Cup of Nations title. For a country that had lost three previous WAFCON finals, the wait is finally over, and Cameroonians from Yaounde to Douala are making sure the world knows it.
How Cameroon Won Their First WAFCON Title
This story did not start the way champions’ stories usually do. Cameroon actually failed to qualify for the 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations through the normal process. Their route back into the tournament only opened up after the Confederation of African Football expanded the competition from 12 to 16 teams, handing Cameroon a lifeline based on their FIFA ranking. Few nations get a second chance and turn it into a trophy. Cameroon did exactly that.
Once they were in, the Indomitable Lionesses built momentum step by step. They topped their group, knocked out defending champions Nigeria in the quarter-finals, survived a nerve-shredding penalty shootout against hosts Morocco in the semi-final, and then delivered their most ruthless performance of the tournament in the final. Marie Ngah Manga scored twice, either side of a strike from 21-year-old Naomi Ndjoah Eto, as Cameroon raced into a commanding lead before the break and never looked back.
There was even a bonus moment of magic. Captain Gabrielle Onguene, playing in her eighth WAFCON appearance at age 37, came off the bench in stoppage time and found the net, only for the flag to go up for offside. It barely mattered. Cameroon had already made history.
Streets of Yaounde Erupt in Celebration
The football was electric, but the celebrations back home have been just as unforgettable. As soon as the final whistle blew in Morocco, festivities broke out across Cameroon and continued deep into the night. Car horns, music, and Cameroonian flags filled the streets of several districts in the capital, with fans pouring outside to mark a moment ten years in the making since Cameroon’s heartbreaking final defeat on home soil in 2016.
The celebration reached its peak on Monday when the champions touched down in Yaounde. Thousands of supporters lined the tarmac and the roads leading from the airport, waving flags, holding up phones, and cheering as the players paraded through the city with their trophy. One fan at the airport described the team’s calm mindset throughout the tournament as the foundation for their historic run, while another supporter admitted she only started following the team midway through the competition and walked away proud of what she witnessed.
What This Means for Cameroonian Football
Beyond the trophy, Cameroon’s win carries serious weight. They become only the fourth nation to ever win the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations, joining Nigeria, Equatorial Guinea, and South Africa in that exclusive group. The Indomitable Lionesses also punched their ticket to the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Brazil, alongside Malawi, Algeria, and Morocco.
For a program that had come agonizingly close so many times, this is more than a trophy. It is validation, a new generation of stars, and a street party that shows no signs of slowing down.
