WAFU-B Women’s Champions League: Edo Queens to know group foes on Wednesday

By Oyediji Oluwaseun Babatunde

Nigeria Women Football League Premiership winners, Edo Queens will get to know their group opponents for the 2024 West Africa Zone B (WAFU-B) Women’s Champions League qualifiers on Wednesday.

The Confederation of African Football (CAF) announced that the draw for 2024 CAF Women’s Champions League Zonal Qualifiers will take place on Wednesday, July 24 at the CAF Headquarters in Cairo, Egypt.

The competition will take place between 10 – 23 August in Abidjan, Cote d’Ivoire at the Stade Félix Houphouët Boigny and Champroux Stadium

Edo Queens which won the 2023/2024 Nigeria Women Football League (NWFL) Premiership title will go into Wednesday’s draw alongside six other teams.

They are Ainonvi FC (Benin Republic), Hasaacas Ladies (Ghana), Inter Abidjan (Ivory Coast), AO Étincelles OR USFA (Burkina Faso), AS National Guard (Niger Republic), and ASKO from Kara (Togo).

According to the draw procedures stipulated by CAF, two pots will be used.

Inter Abidjan as representative of the host country will be seeded in the A1 position.

Hasaacas Ladies who are the highest ranked club in WAFU B rankings occupy position B1.

Pot 1 will have five teams. The first ball drawn will be A2, the second B2, the third A3, and the fourth B3.

In pot 2, the ranking of the seventh team will be determined which will be either A4 or B4.

Moses Aduku’s side will become the fourth Nigerian side to participate at the WAFU-B Women’s Champions League Qualifiers with Cote D’Ivoire set to host the fourth edition as two of the previous three editions took place in Didier Drogba’s country.

Rivers Angels reached the final of the maiden edition which Hasaacas Ladies of Ghana won in 2021.

The second Nigeria side to participate in the tournament, Bayelsa Queens defeated another Ghanaian side, Ampem Darkoa in the final in 2022.

In 2023, Ampem edged the third Nigerian side to have made it to the competition, Delta Queens 1-0 at the Samuel Ogbemudia Stadium, Benin City, Edo State capital in 2023.