Online Reporter
ZIMBABWE’S youth and senior women’s football teams now know their paths in two major upcoming regional tournaments after the Caf Women’s Champions League and U-17 Africa Cup of Nations Cosafa Qualifiers draws were conducted in Johannesburg yesterday.
Herentals Queens, Zimbabwe’s representatives in the Caf Women’s Champions League Cosafa Qualifiers, were seeded into Group C, where they will face CD Costa do Sol of Mozambique and Olympic de Moroni from Comoros. All matches will be played in Johannesburg from August 22 to 31.
Only the top team in each group and the best second placed finisher will reach the semifinals. To balance the competition, Group A results against the bottom placed team will be excluded when determining the best runner-up.
Group A includes two time champions Mamelodi Sundowns (South Africa), along with Malawi’s Ntopwa FC, debutants Beauties FC of Namibia, and Zambia’s Zesco Ndola Girls, also newcomers.
Group B sees 2023 runners-up Gaborone United Ladies FC (Botswana) take on Young Buffaloes (Eswatini) and Kick4Life (Lesotho).
Sundowns have reached all four Caf Women’s Champions League finals, lifting the trophy in 2021 and 2023. Despite falling to Zambia’s Green Buffaloes on penalties in the 2022 Cosafa Qualifiers final, they advanced to the main continental tournament as defending champions. They skipped last year’s regional qualifiers, with South Africa’s University of the Western Cape winning in their absence.
Meanwhile, Zimbabwe will also be in the spotlight as hosts of the TotalEnergies Caf U-17 Africa Cup of Nations Cosafa Qualifiers 2026, set for Harare from September 11–20, 2025.
The home side leads Group A, joined by Mozambique, Comoros and Eswatini. This marks a key opportunity for Zimbabwe’s youth players to shine on home soil.
The tournament’s most competitive group on paper is Group B, where defending champions Zambia and longtime rivals South Africa are drawn together alongside Madagascar and Malawi. Group C includes 2023 finalists Angola, along with Botswana, Mauritius and Lesotho.
Only the winners of each group and the best second placed team advance to the semifinals. In the previous edition, the top three finishers qualified for the continental finals, which double as qualifiers for the expanded 48-team Fifa U-17 World Cup, a tournament now offering 10 African spots.
Both Cosafa events serve as crucial platforms for the region’s top talent, with qualification stakes that extend to the continental and global stage.
CAF
WOMEN’S
CHAMPIONS
LEAGUE
COSAFA
QUALIFIERS
GROUP
A: Mamelodi Sundowns (South Africa), Ntopwa FC (Malawi), Beauties FC (Namibia), Zesco Ndola Girls (Zambia)
GROUP
B: Gaborone United Ladies FC (Botswana), Young Buffaloes (Eswatini), Kick4Life (Lesotho)
GROUP
C: Herentals Queens (Zimbabwe), CD Costa do Sol (Mozambique), Olympic de Moroni (Comoros)
TOTALENERGIES
CAF
UNDER-17
AFRICA
CUP
OF
NATIONS
|
COSAFA
QUALIFIERS
2026
GROUP
A: Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Comoros, Eswatini GROUP
B:
Zambia, South Africa, Madagascar, Malawi, GROUP
C: Angola, Botswana, Mauritius, Lesotho-COSAFA Media.
Bongani Ndlovu