Black Damsels Defend CAF African Schools Title With Penalty Shootouts Win Over Burkina Faso

Ghana’s U-15 girls national team, the Black Damsels, have successfully retained their title as champions of the 2026 CAF African Schools Football Championship held in Zimbabwe.

The young Ghanaian side defeated Burkina Faso 10-9 on penalties after a goalless draw in regulation time in a tense final played today, April 10.

This victory marks Ghana’s second consecutive title in the competition. In the previous edition held in Accra, the Black Damsels defeated Uganda in the final to lift the trophy on home soil.

The triumph also served as sweet revenge for Sandra Boakye’s team, who had lost to Burkina Faso twice before — once in the WAFU B qualifiers and again during the group phase of this tournament.

Ghana produced an impressive performance throughout the competition. They began strongly with a commanding 6-0 win over Guinea and followed it up with a 2-1 victory against Tanzania. Their only group stage defeat came in the final match when they lost 1-0 to Burkina Faso.

In the semi-final, the Black Damsels secured a narrow 1-0 win over Zambia, with Blessing Tetteh scoring the only goal of the game to send Ghana into the final.

The penalty shootout in the final was a display of nerves and composure as both teams battled until the 10th kick. Ghana eventually emerged victorious with a 10-9 scoreline.

With this win, the Black Damsels have once again confirmed their dominance in African schools football and will now look forward to representing the continent at the next global stage of the competition.

Congratulations to fast-rising gaffer Sandra Boakye and her resilient girls on a well-deserved title defence!