WAFU B U20 Championship: Flying Eagles Of Nigeria Drawn In Group B

Nigeria’s Flying Eagles will renew their rivalry with Ghana after both sides were drawn together in Group B of the 2026 WAFU B U20 Championship.

The draw, held earlier today, July 15, also paired Aliyu Zubairu’s side with Burkina Faso and Togo in the qualifying tournament for the 2027 Africa U20 Cup of Nations.

Hosts and defending champions Côte d’Ivoire headline Group A, where they will face Niger and the Benin Republic.

The group-stage meeting between Nigeria and Ghana is expected to be one of the standout fixtures of the tournament, with the two youth football powerhouses meeting again in a competition they have regularly contested.

The WAFU B Championship serves as the pathway to the 2027 U20 AFCON, which Ghana will host. The continental tournament will feature 12 teams, while the four semi-finalists will secure places at the FIFA U20 World Cup.

Nigeria head into the competition with an impressive record. The Flying Eagles finished runners-up in the inaugural edition in 2018 before lifting the trophy for the first time in 2022 and successfully defending it in 2024.

In Niamey in 2022, Nigeria defeated Ghana 2-0 in the group stage, beat Côte d’Ivoire in the semi-finals and overcame the Benin Republic 3-1 in the final to claim the title.

Two years later, the Flying Eagles retained their crown with a 2-1 victory over Ghana in the final in Lomé, thanks to Kparobo Arierhi’s first-half brace.

Nigeria came close to making it three successive titles at the most recent edition but suffered a 1-0 defeat to hosts Côte d’Ivoire after conceding a stoppage-time winner in the final.