Young Scorpions Start Journey To African Youth Championship With Clash Against Liberia Today

The 2026 Wafu Zone A U-20 Championship opens in Mali today.Thursday, October 15,  and runs through October 31.

The youth tournament serves as the official qualifying pathway for the 2027 Africa U-20 Cup of Nations (The African Youth Championship) in Ghana. Eight West African nations are participating, split into two groups of four:

Group A
·           Mali (Hosts)
·           The Gambia
·           Guinea
·           Liberia

Group B
·           Senegal (Defending Champions)
·           Mauritania
·           Sierra Leone
·           Guinea-Bissau

The opening matchday today October 15 will feature Group A action, including a highly anticipated fixture between The Gambia and Liberia.

The Gambian team coached by former international Aboulie Bojang would aim to copy the achievement of the country’s Under-17 team which won the subregional championship to qualify for the Caf Under -17 finals.

To achieve that he must guide these boys to at least the semifinals. Today’s opening match against Libeira kicks off at 4 PM in Bamako where the Young Scorpions arrived since Tuesday morning, via Dakar, Senegal.

Led by GFF Executive Committee Member and President of the Banjul Regional Football Association, Modou Sowe, the Gambian delegation is based at Hôtel Millennium Kamissa,in Bamako’s ACI 2000 district.