Nigeria’s Flamingos have reached the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup final for the first time after defeating Brazil 3-1 in a thrilling semi-final clash in Morocco.
The Nigerian girls delivered an impressive performance to secure their place in the 2026 final, where they will face Japan for the championship.
The match started with both teams eager to secure a place in the final. Nigeria created several early chances through Oluwakemi Adegbuyi and Oluebube Umejiaku. Queen Joseph also came close to scoring in the 21st minute, but the Brazilian goalkeeper produced an important save.
Despite Nigeria’s attacking efforts, both sides went into half-time with the score at 0-0.
However, the second half brought a different story. In the 56th minute, Joseph finally broke the deadlock after receiving a pass from Adegbuyi. Her goal sent Nigerian supporters in Rabat into celebration.
The Flamingos continued to dominate, and midfielder Awawu Bashiru became the star of the evening. She doubled Nigeria’s advantage in the 71st minute, with Joseph providing the assist.
Bashiru struck again in the 80th minute after connecting with a pass from Umejiaku, giving Nigeria a comfortable 3-0 lead.
Brazil managed to score through Greise Kelly in the 89th minute, but the late effort could not change the outcome.
Nigeria recorded 30 attempts during the match, showing how strongly the team controlled the contest.
The victory marks a major milestone for the Nigeria U-17 women’s team, whose previous best result at the competition was a third-place finish in India four years ago.
Their attention now turns to Japan, who secured their final place by defeating defending champions North Korea on penalties in the other semi-final.
The Flamingos will now have the chance to make history by winning their first U-17 Women’s World Cup title.
