Cameroon’s women’s national football team returned home to a hero’s welcome on Monday after winning the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) with a commanding 3-0 victory over tournament debutants Malawi.
The Indomitable Lionesses were greeted by scores of jubilant supporters at Yaoundé’s international airport before embarking on a victory parade through the Cameroonian capital.
Fans at the airport erupted in celebration as the players arrived with the continental trophy.
“We’ve been watching the games since the first game. We have seen them transform into butterflies. We are so happy, really. Long live the Lionesses!” an excited supporter, Lyndsay Tango, said.
The celebrations continued across Yaoundé, where men, women and children lined the streets to cheer the team as they paraded through the city.
For Arlette Missilisem, the triumph represented more than a football victory, particularly for women in Cameroon.
“It validates what a woman can achieve beyond simply watching the children and staying at home. She can go beyond that.
“So this feeling is truly a joy for me as a young Cameroonian woman,” she said.
FIFA President Gianni Infantino and Confederation of African Football (CAF) President Patrice Motsepe attended the final. Infantino later joined Motsepe in presenting medals to the top three teams.
Algeria secured third place after defeating hosts Morocco in the third-place playoff on Saturday.
Infantino and Motsepe also posed for photographs with Cameroon Football Federation President Samuel Eto’o and Cameroon forward Monique Ngock, who was presented with the Player of the Tournament award.
The victory has sparked widespread celebrations across Cameroon, with supporters hailing the Lionesses’ triumph as a landmark moment for the country’s women’s football.
