Leah Fortune

The semifinals for the African Women’s Championship (AWC) are set: Nigeria takes on Cameroon and Equatorial Guinea plays South Africa. The winners of Thursday’s semifinals qualify for the World Cup and advance to the AWC finals on Monday, Nov. 14, at Sinaba Stadium. At the CONMEBOL qualifiers in Ecuador, favorites Brazil and Argentina are unbeaten. Brazil has qualified for every World Cup, Argentina the last two. But Chile, Paraguay, and Colombia look to be legitimate contenders. All five teams are unbeaten heading into Wednesday. Canada capped off its phenomenal run in the CONCACAF qualifiers by beating Mexico, 1-0, on Monday. The U.S., meanwhile, beat Costa Rica, 3-0, to advance to the CONCACAF/UEFA playoff against Italy, which will determine the 16th and final spot in the 2011 World Cup.