Nigeria's Flamingos have made history by winning their first FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup title after defeating Japan 2-1 in Saturday's final in Rabat, Morocco.
Goals from Awawu Bashiru and Oluebube Umejiaku gave Nigeria a two-goal advantage before Japan mounted a late challenge. The Flamingos held on to secure a landmark victory at the Mohammed VI Football Complex.
The triumph makes Nigeria the first African country to win the U-17 Women's World Cup, ending the continent's long wait for the title. It also makes Nigeria the first African country to claim titles in both the men's and women's U-17 categories.
Bashiru opened the scoring in the 39th minute, finishing off an assist from Mary Dunstan to give Nigeria a 1-0 lead at half-time.
Umejiaku doubled the advantage just two minutes into the second half, scoring in the 47th minute after being set up by Esther Stephen.
Japan, champions in 2014 and runners-up in 2010 and 2016, refused to surrender their hopes of a second title. Fuki Ito scored in the 80th minute to reduce the deficit to 2-1, setting up a tense finish.
The Nigerian girls defended resolutely through five minutes of added time to secure the title. Umejiaku was flagged offside in the 94th minute before the referee brought the match to an end.
The victory completes a remarkable turnaround for the Flamingos, whose campaign began with a 2-1 defeat to Poland.
Coach Akeem Busari's side recovered with a 2-0 victory over Puerto Rico before producing one of the tournament's biggest surprises by defeating defending champions North Korea 3-1 to qualify as group runners-up.
Nigeria then beat Mexico 2-1 in the Round of 16, edged Venezuela in the quarter-finals — with Azeezat Oduntan scoring the decisive penalty in the 89th minute — and sealed their first-ever appearance in the final with a 3-1 victory over Brazil.
The Flamingos became the first team in the competition's history to lose their opening match and go on to win the title.
Before travelling to Morocco, the Flamingos won the 2026 WAFU-B U-17 Girls Cup in Côte d'Ivoire, recording five victories from five matches, scoring 17 goals and conceding just once.
Their previous best performance at the U-17 Women's World Cup was a bronze-medal finish in 2022 in India.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino and CAF President Patrice Motsepe were both in the stands to witness the historic final. Korea DPR won the third-place match, beating Brazil 6-0.
President Bola Tinubu congratulated the team, saying: "You've written your names in gold."
"You've made history as the first African team to win the FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup," he said, particularly applauding Bashiru and Umejiaku.
First Lady Oluremi Tinubu also congratulated the Flamingos, describing their achievement as a triumph of resilience and commitment.
Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Barau Jibrin, said: "This victory is a remarkable achievement that has brought immense pride and honour to our country."
Japan coach Sadayoshi Shirai acknowledged Nigeria's superior physicality and pace after the final.
