Kenya’s Junior Starlets booked their place at the 2026 FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup after beating South Africa 3-1 in the second leg of their final qualifying round at Nyayo National Stadium on Sunday.
Roared on by a capacity home crowd, the Junior Starlets completed a commanding 5-1 aggregate victory after taking a 2-0 advantage from the first leg in Pretoria to qualify for a second consecutive World Cup.
South Africa’s Bantwana made a bright start and silenced the home fans in the fifth minute when captain Katleho Malebana capitalised on a defensive lapse to reduce the aggregate deficit.
The visitors dominated possession for much of the first half, forcing Kenya to defend deep as the technically gifted South Africans searched for another goal.
Kenya emerged from the break with renewed intensity and turned the contest around in impressive fashion. Gaudencia Maloba headed home the equaliser before Brenda Awuor calmly converted a penalty to give the hosts the lead.
Substitute Elizabeth Alizeba then capped a clinical counter-attack moments after coming off the bench, sealing a 3-1 victory and sparking jubilant celebrations among thousands of fans who had responded to the #BringTheGameHome campaign.
Maloba had rallied supporters before the decisive encounter, urging Kenyans to fill Nyayo Stadium. “We want to welcome all Kenyans, starting with our President, to come and watch our match. We promise we will not disappoint. We know South Africa is a good team and will come with a different mentality, but we are up to the task,” she said.
The qualification marks another milestone for coach Mildred Cheche, who guided Kenya to their maiden FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup appearance in 2024. She is now the first Kenyan coach to lead a national football team to two FIFA World Cup tournaments.
The expanded 24-team tournament will be staged in Morocco from October 17 to November 7, 2026. Cheche had warned against complacency despite Kenya’s first-leg advantage, insisting her players had prepared for every possible scenario.
“For every game, we prepare for all situations. We prepare for a draw, a loss and a win, but at this particular moment we were preparing for a win,” she said.
South Africa coach Nompumelelo Khumalo had challenged her side to improve their finishing and defensive organisation after the first-leg defeat, but Bantwana were unable to overturn the deficit.
While qualification is another historic achievement for Kenya, the Junior Starlets will seek greater consistency ahead of the World Cup after spending long spells without the ball against South Africa. Their resilience and clinical finishing, however, underlined why they remain one of Africa’s most promising young sides as they prepare for Morocco.
