Chronicle Editor
Mehluli Sibanda, Senior Sports Reporter
ZIMBABWE will start their hunt for a seventh Cosafa Cup title when they face Mozambique on 8 July at the Isaac Wolfson Stadium.
The fixtures for the 20th edition announced by Cosafa on Tuesday show that Eswatini and Lesotho will open proceedings at the Nelson Mandela Stadium on 6 July in Group A with the fixture followed by the clash between South Africa and Botswana a day later at the same venue.
Zimbabwe, the most successful team in the Cosafa having won the regional competition six times since it started in 1997 go up against the Mambas of Mozambique. The Warriors face Namibia at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium on 11 July before they clash with West African guest nation Senegal three days later.
The group stages will be completed on 14 July, with the semifinals for the three group winners and best-placed runner-up to be played two days later at the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium.
The winner of Group A, which includes, South Africa, Lesotho, Botswana and Eswatini, will take on the best runner-up in the semis, with the victors in Groups B (Zambia, Malawi, Comoros, Madagascar) up against the winners of Group C (Senegal, Zimbabwe, Namibia, Mozambique).
Losing semifinalists will be involved in the bronze-medal match on July 18, with the final to be staged later in the day. Both matches are Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium magnificent 2010 FIFA World Cup venue.
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Bongani Ndlovu
Online Reporter