Ghana’s Black Queens have dropped five places to 65th in the latest FIFA Women’s World Ranking, while falling from third to fifth in Africa after a disappointing 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) campaign.
The rankings, released on Tuesday, October 20, 2026, show Ghana losing ground from their previous position of 60th in the world and third on the continent, published in June.
Nigeria remain Africa’s highest-ranked women’s national team, despite slipping seven places to 43rd globally. South Africa are 59th, while African champions Cameroon have risen nine places to 62nd.
Morocco are one place above Ghana in 64th, leaving the Black Queens fifth among African teams in the latest standings.
The ranking changes reflect results from the WAFCON tournament held in Morocco in July and August. Ghana failed to reach the semi-finals after losing to Malawi in the quarter-finals.
That defeat also cost the Black Queens an automatic qualification place for the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Brazil. Ghana must now continue their route to the tournament through the qualification play-offs.
The team’s involvement in the Olympic qualifying campaign for the Los Angeles 2028 Games also contributed to the latest ranking update.
Malawi make historic progress
Malawi recorded the biggest rise in the new rankings, climbing an unprecedented 49 places to 104th in the world.
The Scorchers reached their first-ever WAFCON final and secured historic qualification for the 2027 Women’s World Cup. Their performances in the continental tournament and the Olympic qualifiers earned them 158.44 ranking points, the largest increase recorded in the latest update.
Cameroon’s WAFCON triumph lifted them nine places to 62nd. Tanzania also made progress, moving up 11 positions to 111th, while Burkina Faso climbed nine places to 109th.
Egypt suffered the sharpest decline among the teams listed, dropping 14 places to 113th after losing all three of their group-stage matches at WAFCON.
The Democratic Republic of Congo fell eight places to 114th, and Zimbabwe dropped nine positions to 136th.
The latest standings highlight the changing picture in African women’s football, with Malawi’s historic rise contrasting with Ghana’s loss of ground.
The Black Queens’ fall to fifth in Africa comes as they prepare for the preliminary phase of the play-offs for the 2027 Women’s World Cup next month.
Ghana will now aim to recover their position on the continent and keep their hopes of reaching the global tournament in Brazil alive.
