Nigeria’s Flamingos produced a spirited display to defeat Benin 3-2 in a thrilling first-leg encounter of the final qualifying round for the 2026 FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup at the Remo Stars Stadium.
The highly entertaining contest saw both sides combine for five goals, with the Flamingos showing resilience to reclaim the lead twice and take a narrow advantage into the return leg.
Benin stunned the home crowd in the 14th minute when Yenido Romaine Gandonou found the back of the net to hand the visitors an early lead.
Nigeria responded positively and restored parity ten minutes later through Queen Joseph, whose well-taken strike in the 24th minute brought the Flamingos level before the break.
The hosts returned from halftime with renewed determination and completed the comeback in the 62nd minute as Oluwakemi Adegbuyi fired Nigeria into a 2-1 lead.
However, Benin refused to give up and pulled level once again in the 72nd minute when Nazifatou Dangui capitalized on an opportunity to make it 2-2, setting up a tense finish.
Just three minutes later, the Flamingos found the decisive goal through Ifeanyi Kindness, who calmly finished to restore Nigeria’s advantage and seal a hard-fought 3-2 victory.
The result gives Nigeria a slim advantage heading into the decisive second leg away from home. The return fixture will determine which team secures qualification for the 2026 FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup.
With qualification now within touching distance, the Flamingos will be aiming to complete the job on the road and book another appearance at the global tournament, while Benin will look to overturn the one-goal deficit on home soil.
