CAF has unveiled the first batch of women’s nominees for the CAF Awards 2026. Hanane Ait El Haj, vice-captain of the Atlas Lionesses, is the only Moroccan in the running for the Player of the Year title.
The Confederation of African Football has published the first wave of nominations for the CAF Awards 2026, and Morocco features prominently. According to Le360 Sport, Hanane Ait El Haj, vice-captain of the Atlas Lionesses, is the only Moroccan included in the Player of the Year category.
She is up against, among others, Zambia’s Barbra Banda and Malawi’s Temwa Chawinga, respectively 18th and 10th in the France Football Ballon d’Or 2026, as well as Cameroon goalkeeper Michaely Bihina, nominated in two categories. These are nominations only: no winner is known yet.
Azraf and Er-Rmichi lying in wait
Morocco is not limited to a single nominee. Fourth at AFCON 2026 and qualified for the 2027 World Cup, it also appears in the National Team of the Year category, alongside Algeria, Cape Verde, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, Ghana, Malawi, Mali, Nigeria and South Africa.
According to Le360 Sport, Kautar Azraf (FC Barcelona) is nominated for Young Player of the Year, while Khadija Er-Rmichi (AS FAR) is in the running for the Goalkeeper of the Year trophy.
Chebbak, the shadow of the holder
Morocco also carries the legacy of Ghizlane Chebbak: the Atlas Lionesses captain is the reigning African Women’s Ballon d’Or winner, Le360 Sport recalls.
Three Cameroonians in the running
Footazimuts notes that three Cameroonians — Marie Gisèle Ngah Manga, Michaely Bihina and Monique Ngock — are among the ten nominees for the African Player of the Year title. The Indomitable Lionesses won their first women’s AFCON by beating Malawi 3-0 in the final on 16 August in Rabat; Ngah Manga scored a brace and Ngock was named best player of the tournament.
The Greens and the Super Falcons on the list
Le Jour d’Algérie reports that the Greens, nominated for National Team of the Year, claimed an unprecedented bronze medal and the Fair Play award at AFCON 2026, confirming their first qualification for the 2027 World Cup in Brazil. Marine Dafeur is in the running for African Player of the Year and Chloé N’Gazi for Goalkeeper of the Year.
Nigeria, for its part, can count on the shortlisted Christiana Uzoma, Oluwakemi Adegbuyi and Seimeyeha Janet Akekoromowei, as well as the Super Falcons, according to Vanguard via Apex Football.
The other categories will have to wait. CAF will unveil the lists for Club of the Year, Interclub Player and Coach after the Women’s Champions League in Ismailia, Egypt, Le360 Sport specifies. The ceremony is set for Monday 7 December in Lagos, Nigeria.