Ghana’s female U-17 national team, the Black Maidens, suffered a disappointing 3-0 defeat to Norway in their opening match of the 2026 FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup at Pitch 3 of the Mohamed VI Football Complex in Rabat, Morocco, on Sunday evening.
Joe Nana Adarkwa’s side began their campaign on a disappointing note on the team’s return to the Mundial.
The win is Norway’s first ever in their history at the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup.
Norway made their intentions clear from the opening minutes, taking the lead inside the first 10 minutes through Isabella Lepore, who scored in the 6th minute to put her side ahead.
The Norwegians doubled their advantage just seven minutes later when Maia Melgard found the back of the net, with Hanne Nesse providing the assist for the second goal after setting up Lepore’s opener.
The early double strikes gave Norway added confidence and placed Ghana under considerable pressure as they attempted to find a response.
Melgard completed her brace with 10 minutes remaining, scoring Norway’s third goal to extinguish any lingering hopes of a Ghanaian comeback and seal all three points for her side.
Despite Ghana’s efforts to compete with their European opponents, the Black Maidens struggled to recover from their early setbacks, leaving themselves with work to do in their remaining Group C fixtures.
Meanwhile, in the other group game, Brazil thumped Canada 6-2 to go top of the table.
Greise Kelly led the rout, scoring twice and setting up three other goals in the encounter.
Ghana’s Return Begins on Disappointing Note
The defeat marks a difficult start to Ghana’s return to the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup after missing the previous three editions of the tournament.
The Black Maidens last participated in the competition in 2018, when they produced an impressive group-stage campaign to advance to the quarter-finals.
Ghana won all three of their Group A matches at that edition, finishing above New Zealand, Finland and Uruguay to qualify for the knockout stage with a perfect record.
Their impressive run, however, ended in the quarter-finals against Mexico. The two sides played out a 2-2 draw in regulation time, with Ghana twice taking the lead before losing 4-2 on penalties to exit the tournament.
The 2026 campaign has therefore begun in stark contrast to their last appearance, with Adarkwa’s team now needing to respond quickly to avoid putting their qualification hopes under further pressure.
Ghana’s next game is against Brazil on Wednesday, October 21, before facing Canada in their final game in Group C on October 24.
Ghana secured a place at the ongoing tournament by overcoming Senegal in the final round of African qualifying. After a 1-1 draw in the second leg left the tie level at 2-2 on aggregate, the Black Maidens prevailed 7-6 in a penalty shootout to book their return to the global stage.
Norway Build on World Cup Experience
Norway, meanwhile, continued their development at the youth level with an emphatic victory in their second appearance at the FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup.
The Scandinavian nation made their tournament debut in Morocco in 2025 but endured a difficult introduction, losing all three group-stage matches against China, the United States and Ecuador without scoring a goal.
Their opening victory over Ghana represents a significant improvement on that debut campaign and gives them an encouraging platform as they pursue a place in the knockout stage.
Norway qualified for the 2026 tournament through the UEFA Women’s U-17 Championship play-off route. Their qualification followed another appearance at the European competition, where they reached the semi-finals in 2026.
For Ghana, attention now turns to their remaining Group C matches against Canada and Brazil, where they must produce stronger performances to revive their campaign.
With the tournament format allowing the top two teams in each group, alongside the four best third-placed sides, to advance to the round of 16, the Black Maidens still have an opportunity to recover from their opening setback.
READ ALSO: Vice President Urges Global South to Invest in Education Infrastructures
