Algeria’s women secured their place in the third round of the African qualifiers for the Los Angeles 2028 Olympic football tournament with a 15-0 aggregate victory over the Central African Republic.
Holding an emphatic 8-0 advantage from the first leg in Algiers, Algeria completed the job with another commanding win on Tuesday, beating the Central African Republic 7-0 at the Hocine Ait Ahmed Stadium in Tizi-Ouzou.
Farid Benstiti’s side made a fast start, scoring twice within the opening five minutes. Lynda Bendris opened the scoring in the third minute before Melissa Bethi doubled the lead two minutes later with an acrobatic overhead kick.
Marine Dafeur added a third in the 40th minute, and Bethi struck again in first-half stoppage time to give Algeria a four-goal advantage at the interval.
Bethi completed her hat-trick eight minutes after the restart, underlining her decisive contribution across the tie. Sofia Bekhaled converted a penalty in the 60th minute, while Emma Smaali completed the scoring four minutes later.
Bendris, Dafeur and Bekhaled had also scored in the first leg, and Algeria’s two victories gave them a total 15-0 success over the Central African Republic.
Burkina Faso await in the next round
Algeria will face Burkina Faso in the third round after the West African side eliminated Equatorial Guinea 4-2 on aggregate.
The Burkinabe team went into the second leg with a 3-1 advantage from the first match in Ouagadougou, meaning a draw would be enough to send them through.
Safiatou Sam gave Burkina Faso an early lead by scoring in the sixth minute. Equatorial Guinea equalised six minutes later through Diana Sandra Meriva Bilelo, but the goal did not alter the outcome of the tie.
The result allowed Burkina Faso to progress on a 4-2 aggregate score and set up the next qualifying contest against Algeria.
Algeria’s qualification follows two decisive performances, with the team scoring eight times in the opening match and adding seven more in Tizi-Ouzou. The result also maintained the side’s momentum as the Olympic qualifying competition moves into its third round.