The Kenya National Under 17 Women’s Team Junior Starlets have been nominated for the award of National team of the year in the 2024 CAF Awards.
Confédération Africaine de Football (“CAF”) announced, Wednesday 20, the nominees for awards in the upcoming #CAFAwards24 slated for 16 December 2024 in Marrakech, Morocco.
Junior starlets have been nominated for the award of national women’s team of the year alongside Morocco, Nigeria, Malawi and Namibia as well as under 20 teams of Cameroon, Morocco, Nigeria and Nigeria under 17 team.
CAF unveiled the list of nominees for the women’s categories for the #CAFAwards24, as the much anticipated awards ceremony edges closer.
Junior Starlets earned their nomination following their historic appearance at the 2024 FIFA Women Under 17 World Cup in the Dominican Republic where the girls beat Mexico 2-1 to claim Kenya’s first ever world cup win at a FIFA World Cup and finished third behind eventual winners North Korea and England in group C if the competition.
Junior starlets Mildred Cheche has been nominated in the women’s Coach of the year category after the CAF B holder led Kenya’s junior starlets to stardom, earning their maiden under 17 world cup in the Dominican Republic and made a good impression, finishing third in group C on their first attempt.
Kenyan star Valerie Nekesa who also plays for her school Madira Girls has earned her slot into the shortlist.
Nekesa, who scooped the player of the match in Kenya’s win over Mexico at the 2024 FIFA Under 17 women’s world cup has been nominated for the award of Young Player of the Year.
Football Kenya Federation (FKF) president Nick Mwendwa and FKF deputy president Doris Petra congratulated the nominees on their well earned nominations noting that it emanated from years of hard work that has been put in over the last eight years to develop women football.
“Today, I am extremely proud that our under 17 women’s team, coach Mildred Cheche and our girl Valerie Nekesa have been nominated for CAF awards. It tells you that there is work that has been going on and they surely deserve to win these awards after outing up a great performance,” Mwendwa said.
On her part, Doris, who has been instrumental in steering women football since her election as FKF deputy president in 2016 said; “This is one of my happiest days that I am witnessing women football in Kenya being at the top echelons of continental football creame-dela-creame. For me its a dream come true and that this is the under 17 team competing for awards with senior national teams, I am certain that our future is absolutely bright,” Petra noted.
Junior Starlets beat Burundi to qualify for Kenya’s historic FIFA world cup as coach Cheche became the first Kenyan coach to achieve the feat of taking a national team to the world stage.
She is in a list list of nominees which includes young and emerging African women’s football coaches having qualified Kenya U-17 national team to its first ever FIFA U-17 Women’s World Cup.
The winners of each category will be determined through votes from a diverse panel, including the CAF Technical Committee, media professionals, and the Head Coaches and Captains of Member Associations, as well as clubs participating in the group stages of CAF Interclub competitions.
The CAF Awards 2024 cover the period between January 2024 and October 2024.
Full List of Nominees (in alphabetical order by Member Association)*
Player of the Year
Sandrine Niyonkuru (Burundi / FC Masar)
Tabitha Chawinga (Malawi / Olympique Lyonnais)
Temwa Chawinga (Malawi / Kansas City)
Sanaa Mssoudy (Morocco / AS FAR)
Chiamaka Nnadozie (Nigeria / Paris FC)
Rasheedat Ajibade (Nigeria / Atletico Madrid)
Jermaine Seoposenwe (South Africa / Monterrey)
Thembi Kgatlana (South Africa / Tigres UANL)
Barbara Banda (Zambia / Orlando Pride)
Racheal Kundananji (Zambia / Bay FC)
Goalkeeper of the Year
Cathy Biya (Cameroon / Eclair)
Fideline Ngoy (DR Congo / TP Mazembe)
Habiba Sabry (Egypt / FC Masar)
Fatima El Jebraoui (Morocco / Wydad Athletic Club)
Khadija Er-Rmichi Morocco / AS FAR)
Chiamaka Nnadozie (Nigeria / Paris FC)
Monle Oyono (Nigeria / Edo Queens)
Andile Dlamini (South Africa / Mamelodi Sundowns)
Thandeka Ngcobo (South Africa / University of the Western Cape)
Catherine Musonda (Zambia / Indeni Roses)
Interclub Player of the Year
Sandrine Niyonkuru (Burundi / FC Masar)
Merveille Nanguji (DR Congo / TP Mazembe)
Lacho Flora Marta (DR Congo / TP Mazembe)
Doha El Madani (Morocco / AS FAR)
Khadija Er-Rmichi Morocco / AS FAR)
Sanaa Mssoudy (Morocco / AS FAR)
Emem Essien (Nigeria / Edo Queens)
Monle Oyono (Nigeria / Edo Queens)
Amogelang Motau (University of the Western Cape)
Shadia Nankya (Uganda /FC Masar)
Young Player of the Year
Cathy Biya (Cameroon / Eclair)
Naomi Eto (Cameroon / Amazone FAP)
Habiba Sabry (Egypt /FC Masar)
Stella Nyamekye (Ghana / Dreamz Ladies)
Valerie Nekesa (Kenya / Madira Girls)
Doha El Madani (Morocco / AS FAR)
Lina Mokhtar Jamai (Morocco / Paris Saint-Germain)
Chiamaka Okuchukwu (Nigeria / Rivers Angels)
Flourish Sabastine (Nigeria / Stade de Reims)
Nthabiseng Majiya (South Africa / Mamelodi Sundowns)
Coach of the Year
Hassan Balla Abdousalami (Cameroon U-20)
Lamia Boumehdi (TP Mazembe)
Ahmed Ramadan (FC Masar)
Mildred Cheche (Kenya U-17)
Mohamed Amine Alioua (AS FAR)
Bankole Olowookere (Nigeria U-17)
Chris Danjuma (Nigeria U-20)
Moses Adukwu (Edo Queens)
Mbayang Thiam (Aigles de la Medina)
Thinasonke Mbuli (University of the Western Cape)
National Team of the Year
Cameroon U-20
Kenya U-17
Malawi
Morocco
Morocco U-20
Nigeria
Nigeria U-17
Nigeria U-20
South Africa
Zambia
Club of the Year
TP Mazembe (DR Congo)
FC Masar (Egypt)
CBE (Ethiopia)
AS FAR (Morocco)
Edo Queens (Nigeria)
Aigles de la Medina (Senegal)
Mamelodi Sundowns (South Africa)
University of the Western Cape (South Africa)
