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2026 women’s Afcon: Kenya line up friendlies against Benin, Cote d’Ivoire
Harambee Starlets player group at Stade Lat Dior in Thies, Senegal, on October 28, 2025, during their match against Gambia in a 2025 Women's Afcon qualifiers.
What you need to know:
- Harambee Starlets will first play Benin on March 2 in Abidjan, then play the Ivorians two days later.
- The team, coached by Beldine Odemba, will leave for Abidjan on Saturday for the friendly matches.
With 23 days left until the 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (Wafcon) in Morocco, Kenya has lined up friendlies against Benin and Côte d’Ivoire in Abidjan.
Kenya’s Harambee Starlets will first play Benin on March 2 in Abidjan, then play the Ivorians two days later (on March 4) at the same venue during the Fifa Women’s international break.
The 10-day Fifa Women’s international break will run from February 27 to March 7, and both matches will be played at the Stade Olympique Alassane Ouattara d’Ebimpé in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire.
Côte d’Ivoire defeated Kenya twice with an identical 2-0 scoreline in Abidjan in international friendly matches last April. Côte d’Ivoire is placed 72nd in the Fifa ranking with Kenya at position 133 and Benin placed 139th.
On Sunday, Football Kenya Federation (FKF) confirmed that the team, coached by Beldine Odemba, will leave for Abidjan on Saturday for the friendly matches.
Harambee Starlets coach Beldine Odemba.
After the friendly matches, the team will leave Abidjan for a training camp in Miramas, southern France, until March 15, when the team travels to Morocco for the tournament, which will run from March 17 to April 3.
Harambee Starlets are in Group 'A' of 2026 Wafcon along with hosts Morocco, Senegal, and Algeria.
The team will begin its campaign in the tournament against Morocco on March 17, followed by a meeting with Senegal on March 20. Both matches will be played at the Moulay El Hassan Stadium in Rabat.
Kenya will then play Algeria three days later at Al Medina Stadium in Rabat, in their last group stage match.
Côte d’Ivoire are in Group 'B' with South Africa, Burkina Faso, and Tanzania. Group 'C' has Nigeria, Zambia, Egypt, and Malawi, while Ghana, Cameroon, Mali, and Cape Verde make up Group 'D'.
On October 17, 2024, Morocco were confirmed as the hosts of the tournament for the third consecutive time, becoming the first country to host three editions of the tournament in a row, and the third overall to host the tournament three times.
South Africa and Nigeria have also hosted the tournament three times. The participating teams have been increased from 12 to 16.
