Nigeria’s Flamingos will take on Poland in their opening match of the 2026 FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup in Morocco today (Saturday), with kick-off set for 6 p.m. Nigeria time.

The Flamingos arrived in Morocco on October 7, and the 21-woman squad led by head coach Akeem Busari has intensified training ahead of the opener against the Polish girls.

The Flamingos qualified for the tournament after beating Guinea and Benin Republic of Benin in the second and final round of qualification. They also arrived at the competition after an impressive run at the WAFU-B U-17 Girls’ Championship last month in Côte d’Ivoire.

Nigeria scored 17 goals, conceded one, and won all five matches, including a 4-0 triumph over Togo in the final to win the competition in preparation for the World Cup.

Meanwhile, Poland reached the tournament after beating England 2-0 in the UEFA playoffs with Zofia Burzan scoring a brace. The Europeans are targeting an improved outing after reaching the final of the 2024 edition on their debut.

Coach Busari spoke to FIFA.com and stressed team unity and tactical adaptability ahead of the match.

“We have a flexible team whereby everybody just tries to give their best. We want a team whereby all of them are aiding one another in terms of their efforts and achievement.”
“Our team has a mixed style. We can play a low block, a mid block, or a high block. It’s a flexible team but still a work in progress. They are young girls, so we have to be a little bit patient with them.”

The team has a rich blend of enterprising players like forward Harmony Chidi, Oluwakemi Adegbuyi, and a couple of players that featured at the recent U-20 Women’s World Cup, including Tosin Rafiu, Queen Joseph, Favour Nkwocha, and Goalkeeper Jane Ijirigho.

Nigeria’s Flamingos finished third at the 2022 edition, beating Germany on penalties, and will look to reach the final for the first time.

The Flamingos will take on Puerto Rico on October 20 and defending champions Korea DPR three days later.

The tournament runs from October 17 to November 7.