The HOLLYWOODBETS COSAFA Women’s Championship will be staged in Gqeberha, South Africa from October 22-November 2.
It will feature a record 14 teams, making it the largest women’s international competition on the African continent and we bring you profiles of two of those sides, defending champions Malawi and Mauritius.
MALAWI
Best finish: Winners (2023)
FIFA Ranking: 156
CAF Ranking: 33
Last five tournaments:
2019 – Group Stage
2020 – Semifinals
2021 – Runners-Up
2022 – Group Stage
2023 – Winners
Malawi claimed their maiden HOLLYWOODBETS COSAFA Women’s Championship last year when they defeated Zambia 2-1 in the final to become the fifth winner of the regional title and fourth team in as many years to lift the trophy.
It was an incredible run to the title on the back of Temwa Chawinga’s nine goals in the tournament as they defeated hosts South Africa 4-3 in a thriller to get their competition under way, before wins over Eswatini (8-0) and Madagascar (3-1) saw them to their pool.
That led to a semifinal with Mozambique that they edged 2-1, before beating the Copper Queens by the same scoreline in the decider.
It meant they made up for the disappointment of a silver medal in 2021, where they lost 1-0 to East African guest nation Tanzania in the decider.
On that occasion they finished as the best runner-up in their pool behind hosts South Africa, but went on to beat Banyana Banyana 3-2 in the semifinals.
Malawi played their first ever international at the 2002 COSAFA Women’s Championships but were on the receiving end of an 8-0 loss to hosts Zambia at that tournament.
They beat Lesotho 3-0 in their next game to record a first win but failed to reach the knockout stages.
They defeated Lesotho by the same scoreline at the 2006 COSAFA Women’s Championships, but a 3-0 loss to South Africa ended their semifinal hopes.
Malawi did reach the knockout stages when the tournament was played in 2011, finishing second in their pool, but came unstuck against the South Africans again with a 5-1 semifinal loss.
They eventually finished fourth after losing 3-0 to East African guest nation Tanzania in the bronze medal play-off match.
The side had a mixed competition in 2017, losing to Zambia (6-3), drawing with Zimbabwe (3-3) and claiming a handsome win over Madagascar (6-3) to finish third in the pool with four points.
It was also mixed success in 2018, with a 2-0 win over Madagascar tempered by a loss to Botswana by the same scoreline and a 6-0 hammering from South Africa.
The side continued to show their progress with another strong performance in 2019, but once again they could not sneak into the knockout stages.
They started with a 2-0 win over Madagascar, but that was followed by a 3-1 loss to South Africa. They finished their pool play with a team record 13-0 success against the Comoros Islands.
They were semifinalists again in 2020 as they defeated Lesotho 9-0 in their opener with Tabitha Chawinga managing six goals, before edging Zambia 1-0 in what proved the crucial game in the three-team pool.
That set up a semifinal with South Africa, but after the first half ended at 0-0 they lost 6-2.
In 2022 they failed to get out of their pool as they beat Comoros (6-0), drew with Botswana (1-1) but lost to Tanzania (3-1).
MAURITIUS
Best finish: Group Stages (2017, 2019, 2022)
FIFA Ranking: 194
CAF Ranking: 46
Last five tournaments:
2019 – Group Stage
2020 – Did not enter
2021 – Did not enter
2022 – Group Stage
2023 – Did not enter
Mauritius return for just a fourth ever showing at the 2024 HOLLYWOODBETS COSAFA Women’s Championship and will be seeking a first point after three disappointing appearances in the past.
The islanders have lost all nine of their matches played to date and are the lowest ranked side in this year’s competition, but will be desperate to show their improvement and the great strides made in women’s football in the country.
To be fair, they have been late starters. The country only played their first official senior women’s match in 2012 and so missed all four of the previous COSAFA Women’s Championships in 2002, 2006, 2008 and 2011.
They finally made their debut on the senior stage in 2017 in Zimbabwe, where they had a tough baptism of fire.
After an opening 3-0 loss to Eswatini, they were humbled 11-0 by East Africa guest nation Kenya and then lost 3-0 to Mozambique.
They did not feature in 2018 but returned to the competition in 2019 and it proved another difficult outing.
They opened with a 15-0 loss to eventual finalists Zambia, before they were beaten 3-0 by Botswana and 8-0 by Namibia.
The COVID-19 pandemic meant they did not compete in 2020 and 2021, but were back in 2022, where they were more competitive.
A 5-0 loss to Mozambique was followed by a 4-0 defeat to South Africa and a 3-0 loss to Angola. No wins and no goals, but tighter scorelines.
They have in fact yet to score a goal in any of their nine games at the championship, so there is the chance for someone to make history in 2024.
