Rwanda_women's_national_football_team
The Rwanda women's national football team represents Rwanda in women's association football and is controlled by the Rwandese Association Football Federation. It had to date been scheduled to compete in one major tournament, the inaugural Women's Challenge Cup held in Zanzibar in October 2007, but the event was ultimately canceled. It has finally debuted in February 2014 against Kenya. The team is nicknamed The She-Amavubi (Kinyarwanda for The She-Wasps).
| Nickname(s) | She-Amavubi (The She-Wasps) | |
|---|---|---|
| Association | Rwandese Association Football Federation | |
| Confederation | CAF (Africa) | |
| Sub-confederation | CECAFA (East & Central Africa) | |
| Head coach |  Sosthenes Habimana | |
| Captain | Gloria Nibagwire | |
| Top scorer | Alice Niyoyita Jeanne Nyirahatashima Clementine Mukamana (1) | |
| Home stadium | Stade Régional Nyamirambo | |
| FIFA code | RWA | |
| ||
| FIFA ranking | ||
| Current | 167  (15 March 2024)[1] | |
| Highest | 105 (December 2017) | |
| Lowest | 167 (December 2023 – March 2024) | |
| First international | ||
Rwanda 1–0 Kenya  (Kigali, Rwanda; 16 February 2014) | ||
| Biggest win | ||
Rwanda 2–0 Djibouti  (Njeru, Uganda; 5 June 2022) | ||
| Biggest defeat | ||
 Nigeria 8–0 Rwanda (Kaduna, Nigeria; 7 June 2014) | ||
Background
The development of women's football in Africa faces several challenges, including limited access to education, poverty amongst women in the wider society, and fundamental inequality present in that society that occasionally allows for female-specific human rights abuses.[2] At the same time, if talented women footballers do emerge, many choose to go abroad to maximize playing opportunities.[3] A lack of funding impedes regional development of women's football as most of the funding for the women's national team comes from FIFA, not the national football association.[3]
Inside Rwanda, the first women's football programme was developed in 2000. "Kicking for Reconciliation" was created during the late 2000s, and involved over 100 young players in an attempt at "bringing healing to a nation that saw the worst genocide since World War II" through sport. The programme was open to both Tutsis and Hutus.[4] By 2008, this included a schools and university competition.[5] Women's football was supported by a single dedicated national federation staffer by 2006. Women's sport, including football, received little press coverage in the Rwandan media.[6] A women's football league was founded in 2008, and the country is the only one in the region with a viable league, but it still faces challenges related to funding for teams, with most of its funding coming from FIFA.[7] Grace Nyinawumuntu became the first female referee at the senior level in Rwanda in 2004, and went on to become the first woman to coach a professional team in the country in 2009. Her professional women's side went on to win the league championship under her leadership.[8] The lack of high-level football opportunities in Uganda led to some players going from there to Rwanda for opportunities to play in the country's professional league.[9]
International training related to women is limited in Rwanda. Between 1991 and 2010, there was no FIFA FUTURO III regional course for women's coaching, no women's football seminar held in the country, and no FIFA MA course held for women and youth football.[5] Internationally, in 2007, a representative from the country attended a FIFA sponsored women's football symposium in China.[10] Felicite Rwemarika is the head of women's football in the country.[7] She is credited with developing the sport in the country by founding the Association of Kigali Women in Football amongst other things.[11]
Canceled 2007 participation
The inaugural Council for East and Central Africa Football Associations (CECAFA) Women's Challenge Cup was supposed to be held in Zanzibar in October 2007,[12] an event Rwanda was planning to send a national team to compete in,[6] but the competition was ultimately canceled.[13] The competition was to be funded by Confederation of African Football. The Council of East and Central Africa Football Associations secretary, Nicholas Musonye said of the event, "CAF wants to develop women football in this region in recognition of the milestones CECAFA has achieved over the years. CAF appreciates what CECAFA has done despite the hardships the association has gone through, from financial problems to political instability in member states and poor management of associations. Member states in the CECAFA region have not taken women's football seriously. CAF now wants to sponsor a long-term campaign to attract women from this region into the game."[13][14]
Home stadium
The Rwanda women's national football team plays their home matches on the Nyamirambo Regional Stadium.
Senior national team
While the Rwanda women's national under-20 football team existed and played in matches by 2009 for the 2010 FIFA U-20 Women's World Cup African qualifiers,[15][9][16] the senior national team was not competing in matches during the 2010s.[17][5] There was no senior team competing in the 2010 African Women's Championships during the preliminary rounds[18] or the 2011 All Africa Games.[19] In March 2012, the team was not ranked in the world by FIFA[20] and a senior national team still did not exist.[21] However, a senior national team played its first official match on 16 February 2014.
She-Amavubi debuted on 16 January 2014, in the 2014 African Women's Championship first qualification round, against Kenya in the Stade Régional Nyamirambo in Kigali. They won 1–0 from a goal scored by Alice Niyoyita at the 29th minute in the first leg. In the second leg in Kenyatta Stadium, Machakos, Kenya they lost 2–1 with the solitary goal scored by Jeanne Nyirahatashima. Rwanda qualified for the second round by the away goals rule after finishing 2–2 on aggregate and played against Nigeria. Their third official match was disputed on 13 May 2014 against Zambia and ended in a 3–0 loss, making it the third loss of their record. They disputed the 2014 African Women's Championship second qualification round with Nigeria on 24 May 2014, losing 4–1. The goal was scored by Clementine Mukamana at the 53rd minute. In the second leg, again competing against Nigeria on 7 June 2014, the She-Amavubi lost by a crushing 8–0 defeat, leaving them out of the 2014 African Women's Championship by a 12–1 aggregate score.
Gloria Nibagwire became the first captain of She-Amavubi.[22][23]
Rwanda competed at the 2016 CECAFA Women's Championship, losing both games by a 3–2 scoreline, to Tanzania and Ethiopia.
The Rwandan federation hosted the 2018 CECAFA Women's Championship. The Nyamirambo Regional Stadium held all 10 of the games in the round robin tournament. Rwanda beat Tanzania (the eventual champions) 1–0 but finished last on 4 points from their 4 games.[24]
Rwanda's women national football – the 'She-Wasps' eliminated Kenya in the first round of the 2014 African Women's Championship (AWC).[25]
The following is a list of match results in the last 12 months, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.
- Legend
Win Draw Lose Fixture
2023
v Rwanda
| 12 July 2023 (2023-07-12) 2024 Olympic qualifying | Uganda | 3–3 | Rwanda | Kigal, Rwanda |
|
Stadium: Kigali Pelé Stadium |
v Uganda
| 16 July 2023 (2023-07-16) 2024 Olympic qualifying | Rwanda | 0–1 (a.e.t.) (3–4 agg.) | Uganda | Kigali, Rwanda |
| Note: Uganda won 4–3 on aggregate. | ||||
v 
Burundi
| 15 September 2023 (2023-09-15) Friendly | Rwanda | 0–1 | Burundi | Nyamata, Rwanda |
| 15:00 UTC+2 |
|
Stadium: Bugesera stadium |
v Burundi
| 16 September 2023 (2023-09-16) Friendly | Rwanda | 1–1 | Burundi | Kigali, Rwanda |
| 19:00 UTC+2 |
|
|
Stadium: Kigali Pelé Stadium |
v 
Ghana
| 20 September 2023 (2023-09-20) 2024 AFWCON qualification First round 1st leg | Rwanda | 0–7 | Ghana | Kigali, Rwanda |
| 15:00 UTC+2 | Report | Stadium: Kigali Pelé Stadium |
v Rwanda
| 26 September 2023 (2023-09-26) 2024 AFWCON qualification First round 2nd leg | Ghana | 5–0 (12–0 agg.) | Rwanda | Accra, Ghana |
| 16:00 UTC±0 |
|
Report (GFA) | Stadium: Accra Sports Stadium Referee: Jacqueline Nikiema (Burkina Faso) | |
| Note: Ghana won 12–0 on aggregate. | ||||
- Key
The following table shows Rwanda' all-time official international record per opponent:
| Opponent | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | W% | Confederation |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Burundi | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | −1 | 00.00 | CAF |
| Djibouti | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 100.00 | CAF |
 Ethiopia | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 6 | −4 | 00.00 | CAF |
| Kenya | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | −2 | 33.33 | CAF |
| Nigeria | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 12 | −11 | 00.00 | CAF |
 Tanzania | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 50.00 | CAF |
| Uganda | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 4 | −2 | 00.00 | CAF |
 Zambia | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 | −3 | 00.00 | CAF |
| Total | 14 | 3 | 1 | 10 | 13 | 34 | -21 | 21.43 | — |
Current coaching staff
- As of 21 May 2022
| Position | Name |
|---|---|
| Head coach | Sosthenes Habimana |
| Technical Director | |
| Assistant coach | Shabani Mbarushimana |
| Consolee Mukashema | |
| Goalkeeping Coach | Claude Maniraguha |
| Physical coach | Jennifer Ujeneza |
| Solange Niyigena | |
| Team Manager |
Manager history
| Name | Period |
|---|---|
| Grace Nyinawumuntu |
2014–2017[26][27] |
| Jean Baptiste Kayiranga |
2018–2020[28] |
| Sosthenes Habimana |
2022–present |
Current squad
- This is the Final Squad named in September 2023 For 2024 Women's Africa Cup of Nations qualification .[29]
- Caps and goals accurate up to and including 30 October 2021.
| No. | Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Club | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1GK | Elisabeth Mutuyimana | APAER WFC | ||||
| 1GK | Angeline Ndakimana | As Kigali | ||||
| 1GK | Diane Uwamahoro | As Kigali | ||||
| 2DF | Djamila Abimana | Kamony | ||||
| 2DF | Joselyne Mukantaganira | Rayon Sport WFC | ||||
| 2DF | Lydia Uzayisenga | APAER WFC | ||||
| 2DF | Safi Uwanyirigira | Rayon Sport WFC | ||||
| 2DF | Louise Maniraguha | AS Kigali | ||||
| 2DF | Androsene Uwase | (1995-11-28) 28 November 1995 (age 28) | Rayon Sport WFC | |||
| 2DF | Providence Mukahirwe | Fatima WFC | ||||
| 2DF | Gorette Niyonkuru | | ||||
| 3MF | Dorothee Mukeshimana | Rayon Sport WFC | ||||
| 3MF | Diane Nyirandagijimana | | ||||
| 3MF | Dudja Umwari | FAtima WFC | ||||
| 3MF | Leoncie Tugeriwacu | Inyemera WFC | ||||
| 3MF | Emerance Niyonshuti | KomaniWFC | ||||
| 3MF | Gloria Nibagwire (captain) | (1982-08-14) 14 August 1982 (age 41) | AS Kigali | |||
| 3MF | Alodia Kayitesi | (1996-11-28) 28 November 1996 (age 27) | AS Kigali | |||
| 3MF | Angelique Umuhoza | Rayon Sport WFC | ||||
| 3MF | Martha Nyiramwiza | | ||||
| 4FW | Folrence Imanizabayo | Rayon Sport WFC | ||||
| 4FW | Zawadi Usanase | | ||||
| 4FW | Delphine Irumya | Fatima WFC | ||||
| 4FW | Liberathe Nibagwire | | ||||
| 4FW | Evelyne Ishimwe | | ||||
Recent call-ups
The following players have been called up to a Rwanda squad in the past 12 months.
| Pos. | Player | Date of birth (age) | Caps | Goals | Club | Latest call-up |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| MF | Illuminate nzayituriki | - | - | FAtima WFC |
2024 CAF Women's Olympic qualifying tournament | |
| MF | Zawadi Usanase | (2002-11-28) 28 November 2002 (age 21) | - | - | AS Kigali |
2024 CAF Women's Olympic qualifying tournament |
| MF | Yvonne Umuhoza | - | - | Kamonyi WFC |
2024 CAF Women's Olympic qualifying tournament | |
| MF | Alice Kalimba | (1995-11-01) 1 November 1995 (age 28) | - | - | Rayon Sport WFC |
2024 CAF Women's Olympic qualifying tournament |
| FW | Yvonne Dukuzumuremyi | - | - | Bugesera WFC |
2024 CAF Women's Olympic qualifying tournament | |
| FW | Uberathe Nibagwire | (2002-11-28) 28 November 2002 (age 21) | - | - | AS Kigali |
2024 CAF Women's Olympic qualifying tournament |
INJ Player withdrew from the squad due to an injury. | ||||||
Previous squads
- CECAFA Women's Championship
- Active players in bold, statistics correct as of 2020.
Most capped players
|
Top goalscorers
|
![[icon]](./File:Wiki_letter_w_cropped.svg){kind=small}
FIFA Women's World Cup
Olympic Games
Africa Women Cup of Nations
| Africa Women Cup of Nations record | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Round | Position | Pld | W | D* | L | GS | GA |
 1991 | did not enter | |||||||
| 1995 | ||||||||
| 1998 | ||||||||
 2000 | ||||||||
| 2002 | ||||||||
| 2004 | ||||||||
| 2006 | ||||||||
 2008 | ||||||||
| 2010 | ||||||||
| 2012 | ||||||||
 2014 | did not qualify | |||||||
 2016 | did not enter | |||||||
| 2018 | ||||||||
| 2020 | did not enter, tournament was later canceled | |||||||
 2022 | Withdrew | |||||||
| 2024 | Did not qualify | |||||||
| Appearances | 0/14 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
African Games
CECAFA Women's Championship
| CECAFA Women's Championship record | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Round | Position | Pld | W | D* | L | GS | GA |
 1986 | did not enter | |||||||
| 2016 | Group Stage | 6th | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 6 |
| 2018 | 5th | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 7 | |
| 2019 | did not enter | |||||||
| 2021 | did not enter, tournament was later canceled | |||||||
| 2022 | Group Stage | 5th | 3 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
| Appearances | Group Stage | 5th | 9 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 10 | 17 |
- "The FIFA/Coca-Cola Women's World Ranking". FIFA. 15 March 2024. Retrieved 15 March 2024.
- Jean Williams (2007). A Beautiful Game: International Perspectives on Women's Football. Berg. p. 186. ISBN 978-1-84520-674-1.
- Gabriel Kuhn (2011). Soccer Vs. the State: Tackling Football and Radical Politics. PM Press. p. 34. ISBN 978-1-60486-053-5.
- Sharma, Kalpana (11 July 2010). "The Hindu (English): Just let them play". The Hindu. Chennai, India.
- "Goal! Football: Rwanda" (PDF). FIFA. 25 November 2008. p. 4. Archived from the original (PDF) on 20 July 2012. Retrieved 16 April 2012.
- Huggins, Allison; Randell, Shirley (2007). "The Contribution of Sports to Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment1" (PDF). International Conference on Gender Equity on Sports for Social Change, Kigali, 2007. Archived from the original (PDF) on 26 June 2011.
- "Lack of funds holding back women's football league". Rwanda: The Chronicles. 28 February 2012. Archived from the original on 22 February 2013.
- "Rwanda's First Female Professional Football Coach Defies Gender Stereotypes, Inspires Players". Global Press Institute. Archived from the original on 11 May 2012. Retrieved 17 April 2012.
- Vianney, John (19 January 2012). "Uganda: A Case for Women's Football". allAfrica.com.
- "Rwanda: FA to Attend FIFA Women's Football Symposium". 27 September 2007.
- "Gender mainstreaming versus gender specific strategies" (PDF). Retrieved 18 April 2012.
- Bugingo, Douglas (29 August 2007). "AAGM: Investment in Youth Soccer Reaping Rewards – Mulindwa". The Monitor. Kampala, Uganda.
- Olita, Reuben (27 September 2007). "Cecafa Puts Off Women Tourney". New Vision. Uganda.
- "AAGM: CAF to Fund Regional Women's Championships". The Nation. Nairobi, Kenya. 4 January 2007.
- "African Women U-20 World Cup 2010 Qualifying". Rsssf.com. Retrieved 13 April 2012.
- Kigongo, Ismail D. (13 January 2012). "After DR Congo, Women Need More". The Monitor. Kampala, Uganda.
- "Rwanda: Fixtures and Results". FIFA. Archived from the original on 21 June 2011. Retrieved 11 June 2012.
- "Fixtures – African Women Championship 2010". CAF. Archived from the original on 14 April 2012. Retrieved 13 April 2012.
- "Groups & standings – All Africa Games women 2011". CAF. Archived from the original on 10 May 2012. Retrieved 13 April 2012.
- "The FIFA Women's World Ranking". Switzerland: FIFA. 25 September 2009. Archived from the original on 8 October 2011.
- "Tanzania yapaa viwango FIFA" (in Swahili). New Habari. 4 June 2012. Archived from the original on 8 March 2022.
Nchi nyingine za CECAFA ambazo ni Rwanda, Burundi, Djibouti, Somalia na Sudan hazina soka la wanawake la ushindani kiasi ya kuwa na timu ya taifa.
- "In Rwanda, Gloria Nibagwire Finds Healing After Genocide Through Soccer". alokapapaduria.com. 30 July 2017.
- "Meet Rwanda's women national football team – the 'She-Wasps'". newtimes.co.rw. 8 March 2014.
- "Tanzania retain regional Cecafa Women's Challenge Cup". BBC Sport. 27 July 2018. Retrieved 25 May 2020.
- Umutesi, Doreen (8 March 2014). "Meet Rwanda's women national football team – the 'She-Wasps'". The New Times. Retrieved 16 March 2022.
- "Nyinawumuntu appointed as head coach for national women's team | the Rwanda Focus". Archived from the original on 20 January 2014. Retrieved 20 January 2014.
- Atieno, Lydia (11 February 2021). "Women in football: Grace Nyinawumuntu speaks out on her 2017 downfall, newpath". The New Times. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
- Sikubwabo, Damas (4 April 2018). "Kayiranga appointed women national team head coach". The New Times. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
- "rwanda-women-national-team-name-final-squad—of-the-WAFCON 2024 1st tourement qualifying tournament". twitter.com. Retrieved 2 September 2023.
- Official website (in English)
- FIFA profile (in English)