Guinea have been crowned WAFU-A Under-20 champions after defeating The Gambia 1-0 in the final in Bamako, securing their place at the 2027 Africa Under-20 Cup of Nations in Ghana.
Aboubacar Keïta scored the decisive goal in the 38th minute at the Stade Mamadou Konaté on Thursday, giving the Syli National a narrow victory over their West African rivals.
The triumph marks Guinea’s first WAFU-A Under-20 title since 2018 and completes an impressive campaign under head coach Mohamed Lamine Sylla.
Both Guinea and The Gambia, who finished as runners-up, have qualified for the 2027 continental tournament.
The competition will be hosted by Ghana, with the two West African sides now set to join the continent’s leading youth teams.
Guinea’s route to the trophy included a difficult group-stage defeat and a dramatic semi-final comeback against defending champions Senegal.
The Guineans began their campaign with successive 1-0 victories over hosts Mali and Liberia, putting themselves in a strong position to progress.
However, they suffered a 2-1 defeat against The Gambia in their final group match, giving the eventual finalists an early indication of the challenge they would face in the tournament.
Guinea responded strongly in the semi-finals, producing one of the competition’s most memorable performances to eliminate Senegal.
After falling two goals behind, Sylla’s side fought back to secure a remarkable 3-2 victory over the defending champions and book their place in the final.
That result proved an important turning point in their campaign, setting up another meeting with The Gambia, who had already beaten them in the group stage.
This time, Guinea found a way past the Young Scorpions, with Keïta’s first-half strike separating the teams in the final.
The goal in the 38th minute proved decisive as Guinea held on to claim the trophy at the Bamako venue.
For Sylla and his technical team, the victory represents the reward for a campaign in which the team recovered from setbacks and delivered when the stakes were highest.
The result also gives Guinea an opportunity to carry their momentum into the 2027 Africa Under-20 Cup of Nations, where they will compete for continental honours.
The Gambia will also travel to Ghana after reaching the final, despite missing out on the regional title.
With both teams securing qualification, the WAFU-A tournament has confirmed two representatives from the zone for the next edition of the Under-20 Africa Cup of Nations.
