Women's AFCON 2026: Malawi stuns Algeria at halftime (2-0)

12.08.26 FT Africa Women Cup of Nations

Algeria W

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Malawi W

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Algeria endured a nightmare first half against Malawi, conceding two goals after the early dismissal of Morgane Belkhiter in Rabat.

Algeria trails 2-0 to Malawi at halftime in this Women's AFCON 2026 semifinal. Farid Benstiti's squad struggled to get into the game and quickly found themselves facing an uphill battle.

Before the 25th minute, Morgane Belkhiter was sent off after a tackle on a Malawian forward. After several minutes of review, Nigerian referee Eunice Akintoye finally brandished a red card, a decision hotly contested by the Algerian camp.

The Chawinga sisters punish Algeria

Malawi capitalised on their numerical advantage and imposed their rhythm on the game. In the 33rd minute, Tabitha Chawinga opened the scoring following a corner and a deflection inside the penalty area. The captain, who had already played a decisive role in Malawi’s historic victory over Nigeria, once again led by example. Shortly before half-time, her sister Temwa Chawinga beat the offside trap, rounded Chloé N’Gazi and rolled the ball into the net to make it 2-0.

However, Malawi lost Rose Kadzere, who was sent off just before the break for a dangerous tackle. Now down to ten against ten, the Greens can still believe in another comeback, just as they did against Ivory Coast. They will have to give everything in the second half, as there is nothing left to lose.

Read also: Women's AFCON 2026 / Algeria - Malawi: Which channels and what time is the match live?

Mahdi Zakaria LAZRI |

Editor

Football web writer creating digital sports content with a focus on news, analysis and stories that reflect passion, accuracy and objectivity.

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Algeria W

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