The Super Falcons and Banyana Banyana face off in Casablanca on Thursday as two former African champions go head-to-head for a place in the Inter-Confederation qualifiers for next year's FIFA Women's World Cup in Brazil.
Neither team intended to end up here. South Africa lost their Women's Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) quarter-final 2-1 to Morocco and Nigeria lost theirs 1-0 to Cameroon, who have since set up a final against Malawi on Sunday.
Had Nigeria and South Africa each won their quarter-finals, they would have qualified for the World Cup automatically. However, as it stands, the loser of tonight's game will be out of contention, while the winner will be one of six teams at the preliminary round of the Inter-Confederation Playoffs.
The top two teams in the preliminary round will qualify for the final round alongside four teams given a bye. At that point, the winners of each of the three ties will advance to the World Cup.
Tonight's clash is, thus, the first of three hurdles standing between these two African titans and a place at the FIFA World Cup next year.
- Does South African women's football have the talent pool to recover past glory under Desiree Ellis?
- Super Falcons determined not to follow Super Eagles in failing to qualify for FIFA World Cup
Ghana beat Ivory Coast 2-1 in the earlier kick-off to book their spot in the Inter-Confederation Playoffs preliminary round.