Nigeria’s Falconets have stormed into the round of 16 at the 2026 FIFA U20 Women’s World Cup after a huge 10-1 win over New Caledonia in Poland.
The Falconets produced a dominant display at Stadion Miejski ŁKS Łódź.
They controlled the match from the start and raced into a 4-0 lead before half time.
Nigeria then added six more goals after the break to complete one of their biggest wins in the tournament.
Ramotalahi Kareem opened the scoring from the penalty spot in the 17th minute.
Just two minutes later, Rebecca Adegbemile doubled Nigeria’s lead.
Seimeyeha Akekoromowei then made it 3-0 in the 23rd minute.
Kareem struck again four minutes later to give the Falconets a commanding 4-0 advantage at the interval.
Falconets Complete Huge Victory After Break
Nigeria showed no signs of slowing down after the restart, Winner David added her first goal of the match in the 60th minute.
Kareem then completed her hat trick four minutes later to make it 6-0.
Tosin Rafiu added Nigeria’s seventh goal in the 70th minute.
Adegbemile followed four minutes later with her second goal of the match.
David then scored again in the 75th minute to take Nigeria’s tally to nine.
New Caledonia finally found a response in the 89th minute.
Joceline Kourevi scored the consolation goal, but Nigeria quickly restored their huge advantage.
David completed her hat trick in the 90th minute to seal the 10-1 victory.
The result moved the Falconets into second place in Group F.
More importantly, Nigeria secured their place in the round of 16.
The qualification completes a strong response from the Falconets after a difficult start to the group stage.
Nigeria opened the tournament with a 2-0 defeat against Spain.
However, they kept their knockout hopes alive with a goalless draw against China at Arena Sosnowiec last Thursday.
That draw gave Nigeria their first point of the group campaign.
The Falconets created several chances against China but could not find the finish they needed.
China also entered that match with confidence after beating New Caledonia 5-0.
Spain sit top of Group F with nine points and have already secured their place in the round of 16.
The European champions started the competition with a 2-0 victory over Nigeria, They then produced one of the biggest wins in the tournament’s history.
Nigeria will now carry the confidence from their emphatic victory over New Caledonia into the knockout stage as they continue their push for a deep run at the 2026 FIFA U20 Women’s World Cup.
