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…..Edo Queens’ 4-1 shootout win has no sporting effect after CAF ruled that the WAFU B final should have gone to extra time.
The Confederation of African Football has annulled Edo Queens’ 4-1 penalty-shootout victory over Ghanaian champions Ampem Darkoa Ladies and ordered the 2026 WAFU Zone B Women’s Champions League qualifying final to resume from the beginning of extra time.
CAF’s Organising Committee for Women’s Football issued the decision on September 26, following a protest from the Ghana Football Association on behalf of Ampem Darkoa. The committee ruled that the teams should have played two 15-minute periods of extra time after the final ended 2-2 following 90 minutes.
The original final was played on September 5 in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso. Edo Queens initially appeared to have secured the WAFU B title after winning the subsequent penalty shootout 4-1.
CAF has now stripped that shootout result of its sporting effect.
The 2-2 scoreline after regulation time remains valid, meaning the two teams will return to the pitch to play the 30 minutes of extra time that were omitted from the original match.
Administrative Error Caused Penalty Shootout
CAF said the failure to play extra time resulted from an administrative instruction and was not the fault of either Edo Queens or Ampem Darkoa.
According to the ruling, match officials were initially informed that extra time would be played if the final ended level after 90 minutes.
The same procedure was reportedly communicated during the Match Coordination Meeting involving the participating teams.
However, during the second half, the referee was subsequently instructed to proceed directly to penalties if the score remained level at the end of regulation time.
The referee followed that instruction, resulting in the teams moving directly from the 2-2 scoreline to the penalty shootout.
Edo Queens won the shootout 4-1, but CAF’s review found that the applicable competition regulations required extra time before penalties could be used.
The Ghana Football Association subsequently challenged the procedure on behalf of Ampem Darkoa.
Ampem Darkoa Protest Upheld
Ampem Darkoa argued that the decision to proceed directly to penalties violated the regulations governing the competition.
CAF agreed with the substance of the protest.
The governing body determined that the regulations required two 15-minute periods of extra time when the final remained level after normal time.
Only if the teams remained tied after those additional 30 minutes could the winner be decided through penalties.
CAF’s decision therefore upholds Ampem Darkoa’s protest but does not award the trophy to the Ghanaian side.
Instead, the final remains unfinished.
Why CAF Rejected A Complete Replay
Ampem Darkoa had sought a remedy that could have resulted in the entire match being replayed.
CAF rejected that option.
The committee determined that the first 90 minutes had been validly played and that there was no basis to invalidate everything that happened during regulation time.
As a result, the 2-2 scoreline remains part of the official match record.
The corrective measure adopted by CAF is for the match to resume from the beginning of extra time rather than start again from the first minute.
This means neither team will have to replay the original 90 minutes.
Edo Queens’ Penalty Win Annulled
The most significant consequence of the ruling is that Edo Queens’ 4-1 penalty victory no longer has sporting effect.
The Nigerian champions therefore cannot rely on the shootout result to claim the WAFU B title.
When the match resumes, the score will be 2-2.
Edo Queens and Ampem Darkoa will then play two 15-minute periods of extra time.
If one team scores more goals during extra time, that team will win the final.
If the score remains level after the additional 30 minutes, a fresh penalty shootout will be used to determine the winner.
Original Final Ended 2-2
CAF’s official tournament records confirm that Edo Queens and Ampem Darkoa drew 2-2 after regulation time in the September 5 final.
Dooshima Tarnum and Rose Umejiaku scored for Edo Queens, while Beline Nyarkoh scored twice for Ampem Darkoa, including a penalty. The Nigerian side then won the original shootout 4-1.
The final was a rematch of the teams’ Group B meeting earlier in the tournament.
Ampem Darkoa had defeated Edo Queens 2-1 in that encounter, handing the Nigerian champions their only defeat of the qualifying campaign.
Both teams subsequently advanced to the semi-finals.
Edo Queens defeated hosts USFA 5-1, while Ampem Darkoa beat Benin’s Dynamique FC 4-1 to set up the final.
Conditions To Be Preserved
CAF has directed that, where practically and legally possible, the continuation should maintain the same sporting conditions that existed when regulation time ended.
This includes consideration of player eligibility, disciplinary status and substitutions already made.
The number of substitutions remaining to each team at the end of the original 90 minutes will also be preserved.
CAF has further directed that the same venue and match officials should be used where practically possible, subject to confirmation by WAFU Zone B.
The zonal body will determine and communicate the date, kick-off time and venue in consultation with CAF, the Nigeria Football Federation and the Ghana Football Association.
WAFU B Champions League Ticket Still Open
The ruling also means the WAFU Zone B representative for the 2026 CAF Women’s Champions League final tournament remains unresolved.
CAF’s tournament information had previously listed Edo Queens as the WAFU B representative following their September 5 shootout victory.
With that shootout result now annulled, the qualification place will go to whichever team wins the resumed final.
Neither Edo Queens nor Ampem Darkoa has been sanctioned over the administrative error.
CAF instead attributed the failure to apply the required procedure to the instructions given during the match.
The two teams must therefore return to the pitch weeks after the original final to complete the decisive 30 minutes.
The unusual situation leaves the WAFU B title and CAF Women’s Champions League qualification to be settled on the field, beginning from the valid 2-2 scoreline.
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