Nigeria collects four nominations in the women’s categories, but no Nigerian makes the Player of the Year list and Chiamaka Nnadozie is missing from the goalkeeper shortlist.
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The Super Falcons and three young Nigerians have been nominated for the 2026 CAF Women’s Awards. CAF released the shortlists on Tuesday, November 3, and Nigeria has candidates in three of the four categories it entered.
The Super Falcons are up for Women’s National Team of the Year. Goalkeeper Christiana Uzoma is nominated for Women’s Goalkeeper of the Year, while Janet Akekoromowei and Oluwakemi Adegbuyi are in the running for Women’s Young Player of the Year. The winners will be announced at the ceremony in Lagos on Monday, December 7, at the Wole Soyinka Centre for Culture and Creative Arts.
Uzoma Leads The Goalkeeper Charge
Uzoma is only 17, yet she has already made a big impression. The Edo Queens keeper starred in the NWFL and the WAFU-B Women’s Champions League qualifiers, then captained the Falconets at the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup in Poland when regular skipper Joy Igbokwe missed out on a visa. Those displays earned her a first senior Super Falcons call-up for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic qualifiers.
She joins a strong list of 10 keepers. Cameroon’s Michaely Bihina, who won the Golden Glove at WAFCON 2026, is the standout name, with Morocco’s Khadija Er-Rmichi, Ghana’s Cynthia Konlan and Algeria’s Chloe N’Gazi also in contention. One name is missing: Nnadozie, who won this award three years running, most recently in 2025.
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Two Nigerians In The Young Player Race
Adegbuyi is only 16, and her season has been remarkable. The Robo Queens forward won the 2025/26 NWFL Player of the Season and the Super Six MVP award after scoring 11 goals. She was also MVP at the WAFU-B U-17 Girls Cup in Yamoussoukro, and she was recently released from the Super Falcons camp to join the Flamingos for the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup in Morocco.
Akekoromowei, 18, plays for Benfica and has been a goal scoring sensation for the Falconets. She has now earned a Super Falcons call-up for the Olympic qualifier against Comoros. The pair face eight rivals, including Senegal’s Adji Ndiaye, who is also on the goalkeeper shortlist, and Tanzania’s Winfrida Gerald.
Nigeria has long produced teenage talent, and this pair keep that pipeline flowing. Anyone new to betting around Nigerian football can read about how to get the Bet9ja promotion code before placing a first wager.
Falcons Nominated After A Tough Year
The Super Falcons face Algeria, Cabo Verde, Cameroon, Cote d’Ivoire, Ghana, Malawi, Mali, Morocco and South Africa for Women’s National Team of the Year. Nigeria won this award at the 2025 CAF Awards, so they arrive as the holders.
The nomination follows a painful 2026. The Super Falcons lost 1-0 to Cameroon in the WAFCON quarter-finals in Casablanca on August 9, missing the semi-finals for the first time in the tournament’s 14 editions. A 2-1 defeat to South Africa in the CAF play-off then ended their 2027 World Cup hopes.
There is also no Nigerian in Women’s Player of the Year, where the 10 nominees include Zambia’s Barbra Banda, South Africa’s Thembi Kgatlana and Malawi’s Temwa and Tabitha Chawinga. Last year Rasheedat Ajibade made that list. With Olympic qualifiers also on the horizon, fans can check the latest Bet9ja promo code as the new season picks up.
Nigeria left Rabat with two trophies last year, and matching that without Nnadozie in the race will be tough. The Super Falcons’ record and Uzoma’s rise give the country real hope. December 7 in Lagos will show how CAF’s voters weigh history against a difficult year.
📌 Did You Know?
- The 2026 women’s shortlists feature representatives from 10 countries across three individual categories.
- Michaely Bihina is nominated in both Women’s Player of the Year and Goalkeeper of the Year, while Adji Ndiaye appears in both Goalkeeper and Young Player of the Year.
- Malawi’s Temwa Chawinga is on the Player of the Year shortlist and also featured in the top 10 of the 2026 Women’s Ballon d’Or rankings.
- Cabo Verde is the only country nominated for National Team of the Year without a player on any individual shortlist.
- Asisat Oshoala holds the record with six CAF Women’s Player of the Year awards.
- The Super Falcons collected $150,000 for their WAFCON 2026 quarter-final exit, compared with the $1 million they earned for winning the title last year.