Nigeria, Equatorial Guinea, Cameroon and South Africa have all received byes in the first round of qualifiers for the 2018 Africa Women's Championship to be held in Ghana next year. This comes after the Confederation of African Football (CAF) released the fixtures for the tournament which will be held in November next year. Ghana will qualify automatically as hosts of the competition. The four countries to have given byes will be joined in the second and final of the qualifies by 10

Ghana midfielder Derek Boateng has called time on his international career insisting he is no longer interested in playing for the Black Stars. The 34-year-old, who is currently without a club, is working with his agent to help him seal a deal when the transfer window opens in January in Europe after a short stint in the United States. While eyeing a return to club football, the former youth international midfield starwants to spend the rest of his time helping young players reach their full