With their first ever victory at the TotalEnergies CAF Women’s Africa Cup of Nations behind them now, Burkina Faso have unlocked a level of confidence never seen before in their camp.
Their first ever three points at the continental tournament mean so much to the Lady Stallions that they have turned things around. There is more belief, an enviable bounce in their steps when they walk and now, more than ever, they can smile ear-to-ear.
A deep sigh of relief at full-time broke into energetic dancing with their hundreds of fans inside the Larbi Zaouli Stadium when they edged Tanzania 2-1 last Friday. 31 July. It is a day that they will never forget.
It is this aura that they want to bring into their encounter tonight against WAFCON 2022 champions South Africa, who have claimed just one point from a possible six in the group stages.
HISTORY IN SIGHT FOR BURKINA FASO
The football gods continue to flip the script at the WAFCON 2026 with surprises, near misses and outright edge-of-the-seat football on the pitch. And to continue subscribing to this club, Issa Balbone’s outfit are on a mission to cause yet another upset.
Ranked 118th in the world rankings and 16th on the African continent, Burkina Faso go into Tuesday’s matchup against South Africa as the underdogs but refuse to be intimidated by their opponent’s past achievements. Banyana Banyana sit in second position on the African continent and 57th globally.
“Following our [4-1] defeat to Ivory Coast, the players made a commitment to make us dream and they did it. We recorded our first ever victory at the tournament and we now have our fate in our hands. We are fully focused on the game against South Africa and we shall go out there to win and qualify for the knockout stages,” Balbone says with full confidence in his players.
This will be the first time the Burkinabe face Southern African opposition.
Burkina Faso defender Alimata Belem speaks passionately when asked what a victory against South Africa would mean for women’s football in her country.
“We have an opportunity to continue writing history for our country - Burkina Faso. This would mean so much to us – as a team and our people if we go on to win this game. We are ready and determined to get three points,” Belem says with confidence.
This is the first time that Burkina Faso will come up against former WAFCON champions. Their 19 shots at goal against Tanzania with seven of them going on target will give them confidence against South Africa in this important match.
BATTLE-HARDENED BANYANA BANYANA IN FAMILIAR TERRITORY
Been there, done that! South Africa, once again, find themselves between a rock and a hard place as they prepare to take on in-form Burkina Faso in a must-win encounter if they still harbour intentions of progressing at the continental showpiece.
“Over the years, this team has shown resilience. You look back at the World Cup when we were going up against Italy, we knew what we had to do and we got the victory - the resilience. Never say die until the final whistle,” said head coach Desiree Ellis.
Just like at this WAFCON 2026, South Africa started their campaign at the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023 Down Under with a 2-1 loss to Sweden before settling for a 2-2 draw with Argentina and needing a victory over Italy to progress and progress they did.
A late Thembi Kgatlana goal in the 94th minute ensured that they qualified for the knockout round for the first time in tournament history. It is that resilience that Ellis is referring to.
In full agreement with her is goalkeeper Kaylin Swart who adds: “Our team is full of soldiers. Against Burkina Faso, it is going to be another battle and we are ready for it. We just have to look at the positives and have a strong mental toughness. It will take so much. I have a lot of faith in the team. Our spirit has never faulted.”
Swart started in between the posts in the 2-2 draw with Ivory Coast, replacing Andile Dlamini, who was in goal for their shocking opening day 2-1 defeat to Tanzania.
Swart revealed that despite the change in the coach’s tactics, there is no tension between the two goalkeepers and that, in fact, “We are a family. We are very good friends on and off the pitch. We have a strong unit and with goalkeeping, we understand that only one can be on the pitch at a particular time.”
The pair alongside Kebotseng Moletsane were seen in deep discussion following the team’s fight to overturn a 2-0 deficit against Ivory Coast to force a draw. Their visible togetherness on the touchline as Swart took off her gloves and listened to both of them is what the JWV Girls custodian is referring to.
“I am very excited ahead of the game against Burkina Faso. It will be a battle. Who would have thought when the draw was made that we would be in this position at this point? Look how this group has turned into the group of death. It shows how much football has grown in Africa. We draw inspiration from Spain. They lost to Japan [4-0 in the group stages] and went on to win the trophy. I won’t put my head on the line to say that we shall win the tournament, but this kind of pressure is a privilege,” Swart explains in detail.
THE STAT OF THE DAY
Burkina Faso, who are yet to keep a clean sheet at the WAFCON finals, will progress with a win or draw against South Africa.
South Africa are unbeaten in their final group match at the last seven editions and have progressed beyond the group stages at each of the four tournaments with Desiree Ellis at the helm.
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