Bafana set to face Botswana in COSAFA Cup opener

Bafana Bafana are set to face off against Mozambique when the two sides meet in their opening fixture of the COSAFA Cup which takes place in July.

The COSAFA Cup tournament marked the ninth consecutive year that the 12 countries were drawn to compete against each other. Notably, Botswana had never won an outright match in their previous 12 encounters.

The other sides in what is set to be a fiercely contested Group A are Mozambique and Eswatini.

Seven-time champions in record In addition to trying to become the first team to win the COSAFA Cup three times in a row, Zambia’s Group B matches against Comoros and Zimbabwe should be exciting. We’ll confirm the fourth team in that pool as soon as possible.

Group C comprises three-time winners Angola, 2015 champions Namibia, and Seychelles, as well as last year’s runners-up, Lesotho.

The pool games are scheduled for June 26–July 3. The semifinals and final, together with the third-place play-off, will take place on July 5 and July 6, respectively.

Throughout the competition, the structure guarantees that every nation will play a minimum of three games and a maximum of five. It also improves player wellbeing by allowing for an additional day of relaxation in between most pool games.

Though several amazing games and performances from the 22 previous COSAFA Cup editions have been ingrained in Southern African football tradition, only five countries can lay claim to have won the prized trophy.

Zambia won seven titles in a row in 2023, which puts them at the top of the list. That is one more than Zimbabwe; the only other teams to win regional titles were South Africa (five), Angola (three), and Namibia (one).

Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Botswana, and Malawi have all advanced to the final twice but lost both times. Senegal, who had been invited twice, was the only other country to make it to the final but lost to South Africa in 2021.

THE 2024 COSAFA CUP DRAW IN FULL: