Black Princesses head coach Charles Sampson has praised his players for their determination and fighting spirit after Ghana secured qualification to the 2026 FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup at the expense of Uganda.
The Black Princesses completed the qualification campaign in dramatic fashion, showing resilience across both legs of the playoff tie. Ghana recovered from an early setback to record a 2-1 victory in Accra before battling to a 1-1 draw in Kampala despite playing much of the match with ten players.
Ghana’s task became even more difficult after Margaret Agyaponmaa received a red card in the 68th minute of the return encounter. However, Linda Owusa Ansah produced a crucial equaliser with 12 minutes remaining, a goal that ultimately sealed Ghana’s place at the tournament in Poland.
Speaking after the game, Coach Sampson could not hide his admiration for the squad’s performance and mental strength throughout the qualifiers.
“The girls showed a lot of character, a lot of resilience and willingness beyond the normal. I am so so proud of them. Proud of the team and how they have been able to qualify,” he said after the game.
“This is one of the things that made me to say how we qualified is what I am so impressed with. This group has been tested in so many ways and to be able to come out with this too, and this red card when we were down with one and shown this sort of resilience and character to be able to qualify, words can’t describe how I feel.”
The qualification means the Black Princesses will make their tenth appearance at the FIFA U-20 Women’s World Cup, further cementing Ghana’s strong presence in women’s youth football on the global stage.
Attention will now turn to preparations for the tournament, where Coach Sampson is expected to assemble a competitive squad capable of surpassing the team’s previous performances, having fallen short of progressing beyond the group stage in earlier editions.
