Algeria Beats Morocco in Women's AFCON Third-Place Match
Listen to the story
Algeria has surprised Morocco by winning the third-place match of the Women's Africa Cup of Nations (CAN) 2026 on penalties. The match had a dramatic and unexpected ending.
In the 97th minute of the game, a player missed a crucial penalty kick. This meant that neither team could win the match in normal or extra time.
Because the score was still level, the match went to a penalty shootout. In this part of the game, both teams take turns to shoot at the goal, and the team that scores more penalties wins.
Algeria managed to win the shootout, securing third place in the tournament. Morocco finished in fourth place after this dramatic loss.
News reports described the match as having a completely 'crazy' scenario, referring to the missed penalty and the tense shootout that followed. It was seen as a surprising result, since Morocco had been expected by many to win.
This was the last match of the tournament for the Algerian national team. The players were praised for their strong mobilization, or team effort, in the final stages of the competition.
The Women's Africa Cup of Nations is an important tournament for national women's football teams across Africa, and finishing in third place is considered a strong achievement.
Vocabulary7 words
- penalty kick
- a shot at the goal from close range, given as a rule
- penalty shootout
- a way to decide a winner when both teams take turns shooting at the goal
- third place
- the position just after first and second place
- dramatic
- very exciting and full of sudden changes
- scenario
- the way a series of events happens
- mobilization
- when people work hard together for one goal
- tournament
- a competition with many matches between teams
Quiz
Answer key
1. A player missed a penalty 2. By a penalty shootout 3. Third place
Fill-in-the-blank listening
Play the audio again and fill in the missing words as you listen.
Algeria has surprised Morocco by winning the third-place match of the Women's Africa Cup of Nations (CAN) 2026 on _____. The match had a dramatic and unexpected ending.
In the 97th minute of the game, a player missed a crucial _____. This meant that neither team could win the match in normal or extra time.
Because the score was still level, the match went to a _____. In this part of the game, both teams take turns to shoot at the goal, and the team that scores more penalties wins.
Algeria managed to win the shootout, securing _____ in the tournament. Morocco finished in fourth place after this _____ loss.
News reports described the match as having a completely 'crazy' _____, referring to the missed penalty and the tense shootout that followed. It was seen as a surprising result, since Morocco had been expected by many to win.
This was the last match of the tournament for the Algerian national team. The players were praised for their strong _____, or team effort, in the final stages of the competition.
The Women's Africa Cup of Nations is an important _____ for national women's football teams across Africa, and finishing in third place is considered a strong achievement.
Discussion questions
- Why do you think penalty shootouts can be so exciting for fans?
- Have you ever watched a match with a dramatic ending like this one? What happened?
- Why might finishing third in a tournament still be an important achievement for a team?
- Do you think missing a penalty late in a match affects a team's confidence? Why or why not?