‘We Are Not Out Yet’: Ellis
Banyana Banyana coach Desiree Ellis believes South Africa still has everything to play for at the 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON), insisting their dream of reclaiming the continental title and qualifying for the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup remains alive despite a disappointing start to the tournament in Morocco.
South Africa opened their Group B campaign with a 2-1 defeat to Tanzania at the Moulay Rachid Stadium in Casablanca on Monday, leaving Ellis’ side under pressure heading into their remaining group-stage fixtures. However, the Banyana coach remains confident her players can turn their campaign around and achieve both objectives.
Banyana lifted the WAFCON title in 2022 but failed to defend their crown in 2025. They arrived in Morocco determined to reclaim the continental title while also pursuing qualification for the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Brazil.
The four teams that reach the semi-finals will automatically qualify for the global showpiece.
Although disappointed by the defeat, Ellis stressed that her side’s campaign is far from over.
“We are not out of it yet. We know what we need to do,” said Ellis.
“The next game becomes a must-win game, which is going to be very important. I think everybody is disappointed with the result, and everybody is disappointed with the performance.
“But we have to look towards the next game because we’re still in it. We’re still in contention to qualify for the World Cup, but it’s a must-win in the next game.
“We obviously spoke about how important this opening game was because otherwise you’re chasing in the group. Now we’re chasing in the group, and it’s up to us to raise our standards and show who we really are.
“Ivory Coast is going to be another big challenge, another physical team from West Africa. The positives we can take from the game are that we created many opportunities, and that’s a plus for us.”
Ellis admitted her side struggled to impose themselves in the opening half before producing a much-improved performance after the break. However, she believes Banyana paid the price for failing to convert the numerous chances they created.
“Look, I always said it was going to be a difficult game, but I also said how important this opening match is; otherwise you’re chasing in the group,” she added.
“In the first half, we were a bit slow in our tempo. There were also very few options going forward.
“I think then we conceded from a turnover in midfield. They scored, and we equalised to go into halftime at 1-1.
“I thought the second-half performance was much better. We created a lot of opportunities and a lot of chances. But the way we conceded was really poor.
“If we had shown more composure in front of goal, we’d be having a different conversation. It was not a great performance and not a great result.
“We know we are better than that, and we’re disappointed with both the result and the performance. Now the next two games become must-win matches, and that’s what we said from the beginning.
“We’re disappointed because we disappointed ourselves and also the people back home. But with the effort the players put in during the second half, we could easily have won the game or at least found an equaliser.
“But you cannot create so many opportunities and fail to convert them because that’s the name of the game. They literally had two chances, and they scored.”
Banyana now turn their attention to a crucial Group B clash against Ivory Coast on Friday at the Moulay Rachid Stadium. The West Africans head into the encounter full of confidence after recording an emphatic 4-1 victory over Burkina Faso in their opening match on Monday.
