Boston Legacy FC’s Aïssata Traoré called up to Mali national team for Women’s Africa Cup of Nations

Sport admin July 22, 2026 0 Comments

Boston Legacy FC’s Aïssata Traoré called up to Mali national team for Women’s Africa Cup of Nations

Boston Legacy FC striker Aïssata Traoré earned a call-up to the Mali national team for the 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations, a tournament that doubles as a qualifier for the 2027 Women’s World Cup.

Traoré, the Legacy’s co-leading scorer with four goals this season, could be out of Boston’s lineup for nearly a month during WAFCON, held in Morocco from July 26 to Aug. 16.

Legacy coach Filipa Patão will have to get creative with her lineups in Traoré’s absence and lean on Amanda Gutierres, a 2025 nominee for the Ballon d’Or and the Legacy’s co-goals leader.

Three of Gutierres’s four goals have come from the penalty spot, however, so Patão will look for more production from the Brazilian striker in the run of play.

“It’s not just the goals, it’s the performance, the way that she carries the team, the way that she allows us to have more space between the lines,” Patão said of Traoré’s impact.

The Legacy are also considering adding to their roster, Patão said, whether through loans, trades, or transfers. The Legacy brought in two new players in July — Hingham native and 2025 NWSL Rookie of the Year Lilly Reale, and center back Deja Davis — and they may not be done yet.

“It’s not just because Aïssata [is leaving],” Patão said. “It’s because we are building our squad not just for this season but for the next steps and the future that we need here in our team.”

Related: Legacy concede twice in six minutes, fall to Spirit, snapping three-game unbeaten run

Traoré, the first Malian player to compete in the NWSL, earned her first cap with the national team in 2018 and has featured regularly in the years since. She was part of Mali’s squad that reached the WAFCON semifinals in 2018.

All four WAFCON semifinalists will qualify for the 2027 Women’s World Cup in Brazil.

In Group D alongside Cameroon, Ghana, and first-timer Cape Verde, Mali will open its campaign against Cameroon on July 29.

Related: New soccer fans, don’t despair! The Women’s World Cup is less than a year away.

Traoré and Mali enter the tournament as underdogs. Of this year’s 16-team field, only two nations — Nigeria and South Africa — have won the tournament. Host Morocco has finished second in consecutive tournaments, while Ghana is coming off a third-place finish. Zambia, led by Orlando Pride standout Barbra Banda, rounds out the top contenders.

Many of the NWSL’s top teams will be without stars throughout WAFCON, as the league has attracted some of the best international players with its reputation for development and tough competition.

“We help each other to grow every day, and that will also project us into WAFCON because it’s also going to be a physical game,” Washington Spirit forward Gift Monday, of Nigeria, said Sunday after her team’s 2-1 win over Boston. “I can feel [and] see that we are ready for the competition.”