WAFU-B U17 Championship: Golden Eaglets face Benin Republic in Yamoussoukro

By Tosin Omojola –

Nigeria’s Golden Eaglets will begin their campaign in the WAFU-B U-17 Championship this evening in Yamoussoukro, Côte d’Ivoire, with a clash against their counterparts from Benin Republic.

The five-time world champions will face the Beninoise in a Group B encounter at the Stade du Lycée Scientifique.

This will be Benin Republic’s second game of the tournament, having earlier lost 0-1 to Burkina Faso in the group’s opening fixture on Sunday. They now have no option but to avoid defeat against Nigeria if they hope to progress from the group.

What this means is that the Coach Manu Garba-led Eaglets must win the encounter to boost their chances of advancing, especially with a crucial clash against Burkina Faso still to come in their final group match.

The WAFU-B competition serves as the qualifying tournament for next year’s Africa U-17 Cup of Nations, which will determine Africa’s representatives at the 2026 FIFA U-17 World Cup in Qatar.

In Group A, hosts Côte d’Ivoire defeated Niger Republic 2-0, while Togo and Ghana played out a 1-1 draw as the competition kicked off over the weekend.