Algeria make history at WAFCON

The comeback

Ivory Coast made the perfect start. Ines Konan put the Elephants ahead and, for a spell, it looked like Algeria's historic run might end right there in the Casablanca heat. It didn't. Ines Khiri levelled, and then Amira Ould Braham put Algeria in front — a lead they would not surrender.

According to ESPN FC, Ivory Coast's collapse was not purely down to Algerian quality. A red card and a series of defensive and goalkeeping errors contributed to the Elephants unravelling after Konan's opener. The precise details of those incidents are still being confirmed, and Flagside will update this piece once the full picture is clear.

What it means

Algeria are the first side into the WAFCON semifinals. They are also, as of Saturday evening, a Women's World Cup nation — something that has never been true before. That is not a small thing. Algeria reached the 2022 WAFCON group stage but went out without a win; three years later they are booking flights to the World Cup.

Ivory Coast, one of West Africa's more established women's programmes, were the side standing between Algeria and history. They couldn't hold it.

The bigger picture

WAFCON 2024 is being played in Morocco, and the host nation's run to the 2022 final helped push women's football up the agenda across the continent. Algeria are the latest beneficiary of that momentum — and the first North African side other than Morocco to qualify for a Women's World Cup.

The semifinal awaits. The World Cup is already booked.