Nigeria will be represented by two young referees at the second West African Football Union (WAFU) B U-17 Girls’ Tournament in Côte d’Ivoire, with Scholastica Ikeobi and Gbemisola Yusuf earning places among the match officials for the competition, Nigeriasoccernet.com reports.
The tournament will take place in Yamoussoukro from September 15 to 28, 2026, bringing together some of the region’s emerging female football talents.
Ikeobi and Yusuf are part of a group of 14 young referees selected for the tournament, with each of the seven WAFU B member associations providing two officials.
Their selection comes after they took part in the WAFU B ‘Young Talents’ refereeing course held at the Ghanaian Centre of Excellence in Prampram from March 21 to 25, 2026.
The development programme was organised to identify promising young match officials and provide them with the necessary training and exposure to progress in their refereeing careers.
The upcoming tournament will allow Ikeobi and Yusuf to gain experience from officiating competitive international matches while also demonstrating their abilities before regional football authorities.
WAFU B and other football stakeholders will equally use the competition to monitor the progress of the young officials as they continue their development through the international refereeing pathway.
For Nigeria, the appointments provide another opportunity for its emerging referees to gain valuable international experience and strengthen their profiles within West African football.
Ikeobi and Yusuf will now look to make the most of their assignments in Yamoussoukro as they target further opportunities at WAFU B, CAF and eventually FIFA level.