2025 COSAFA Women's Championship

Hollywoodbets COSAFA
Women's Championship 2025

Tournament details
Host country	South Africa
City	Polokwane
Dates	18 February – 1 March 2026
Teams	11 (from 1 sub-confederation)
Venue	3 (in 1 host city)
Tournament statistics
Matches played	9
Goals scored	26 (2.89 per match)
Top scorer(s)	Deborah Henry (3 goals)
← 2024 2027 → All statistics correct as of 22 February 2026.

The 2025 COSAFA Women's Championship, officially known as the 2025 Hollywoodbets COSAFA Women's Championship for sponsorship purposes, is the thirteenth edition of the COSAFA Women's Championship, the annual international women's association football championship was contested by the women's national teams of Southern Africa. Initially set to be held in the fall of 2025, the tournament was pushed to early 2026 due to the host's unavailability. South Africa will host the tournament for the eighth straight edition from 18 February to 1 March 2026. ^{[1] [2]}

Zambia are the defending champions, having won their second title after beating South Africa 4–3 on penalties following a scoreless draw. ^[3]

Postponement and Host selection

By mid-October 2025, close to the initial scheduled period for the tournament to take place, it was announced that South Africa, which had hosted the previous seven editions, were not willing to host the tournament for an eighth time. ^[4] With no other country willing to step in as host, COSAFA announced the postponement of the 2025 edition to the early quarter of 2026. ^[5] With the tournament now pushed to early 2026, ahead of WAFCON taking place in March, the championship will serve as a preparation competition for the three regional body members that had qualified for the continental finals. ^[6] On 23 January 2026, COSAFA confirmed that South Africa would host the tournament for an eighth time, providing fine-tuning ahead of the continent's finals. ^[7]

Location and Venues

The 2025 edition will be hosted in Polokwane, marking the city's first time hosting the tournament among South Africa's eight editions as host.

The following 3 venues will be used for the tournament:

Polokwane			Polokwane
Seshego Stadium	Old Peter Mokaba Stadium	New Peter Mokaba Stadium
Capacity: 15,000	Capacity: 15,000	Capacity: 45,500

Teams

Pariticpating teams

Eligibility for participation in the championship is open to all 14 COSAFA members; however, teams outside the regional body may also be eligible if they receive an invitation.

On 4 February 2026, COSAFA announced that 11 countries would participate in the 2025 edition. Comoros, Mauritius and Seychelles, all of which participated in 2024, decided not to participate in this edition.

Note: All appearance statistics exclude the 2008 edition.

Team	App	Last appearance	Previous best performance	FIFA ranking December 2025	Ref.
Angola	8th	2024	Runners-up (2008)	155	[8]
Botswana	11th	2024	Runners-up (2020)	141	[8]
Eswatini	11th	2024	Group stage (2002, 2006, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024)	184	[9] [8]
Lesotho	10th	2024	Group stage (2002, 2006, 2008, 2011, 2017, 2018, 2020, 2022, 2023, 2024)	177	[10] [11]
Madagascar	6th	2024	Group stage (2017, 2018, 2019, 2023, 2024)	192	[11]
Malawi	12th	2024	Champions (2023)	153	[12] [11]
Mozambique	11th	2024	Third place (2023)	172	[13]
Namibia	9th	2024	Runners-up (2006)	124	[13]
South Africa	12th	2024	Champions (2002, 2006, 2017, 2018 , 2019 , 2020 )	55	[13]
Zambia	12th	2024	Champions (2022, 2024)	64	[14] [15]
Zimbabwe	11th	2024	Champions ( 2011 )	129	[16] [15]

Squads

Main article: 2025 COSAFA Women's Championship squads

Each national team had to submit a squad of 23 players, three of whom had to be goalkeepers. ^[17]

Draw

The final group stage draw took place in Polokwane on 4 February 2026 at 11:00 SAST (UTC+2). ^{[18] [19]}

The top three teams from the previous tournament were automatically seeded into the first positions of Groups A–C. Hosts South Africa were placed in A1, defending champions Zambia in B1, and Mozambique in C1. The remaining teams were allocated to two pots for the draw:

Pot 1	Pot 2
Malawi   Namibia   Botswana	Zimbabwe   Madagascar   Eswatini   Lesotho   Angola

Match officials

Referees

• Laurinda Caluvi
• Kealeboga Koitsiwe
• Mathapelo Morake
• Élodie Livaharivony
• Rose Zimba
• Cacilda Fernando
• Hloniphile Msezane
• Nonjabulo Ndlela
• Anna Banda
• Grace Gimo

Assistant referees

• Kakale Mbiko
• Patricia Mkhaliph
• Elisane Rafanomezantsoa
• Herilalaina Razafitsalama
• Happiness Mbandambanda
• Margarete Gimo
• Roda Mondlane
• Olivia Amukuu
• Eveline Augustinus
• Nandipha Menze
• Beauty Siatontola
• Claris Simango

Group stage

All times are local, SAST (UTC+2). The match schedule was announced by COSAFA on 5 February 2026. ^[20]

Tie-breaking criteria for group play

The ranking of teams in the group stage was determined as follows: Points obtained in the matches played between the teams in question (three points for a win, one for a draw, none for a defeat); Goal difference in the matches played between the teams in question; Number of goals scored in the matches played between the teams in question; Goal difference in all group matches; Fair play points in all group matches (only one deduction could be applied to a player in a single match): Yellow card: −1 point; Indirect red card (second yellow card): −3 points; Direct red card: −4 points; Yellow card and direct red card: −5 points; Drawing of lots.

Group A

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	South Africa (H, A)	2	2	0	0	4	0	+4	6	Advance to knockout stage
2	Malawi	2	1	0	1	8	3	+5	3	Possible knockout stage
3	Angola	2	1	0	1	3	3	0	3
4	Lesotho (E)	2	0	0	2	2	11	−9	0

Updated to match(es) played on 21 February 2026. Source: COSAFA
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers
(A) Advance to a further round; (E) Eliminated; (H) Hosts

18 February 2026 (2026-02-18)

12:00

Lesotho	1–3	Angola
Moalosi 49'	Report	Cristina 39' Meury 42' Ary Papel 54'

Old Peter Mokaba Stadium, Polokwane

Referee: Grace Gimo (Zimbabwe)

18 February 2026 (2026-02-18)

15:00

South Africa	2–0	Malawi
Holweni 63' Mokoma 90+1'	Report

Old Peter Mokaba Stadium, Polokwane

Referee: Anna Banda (Zambia)

---

21 February 2026 (2026-02-21)

12:30

South Africa	2–0	Angola
Salgado 12' Mthandi 78'	Report

Seshego Stadium, Seshego

Referee: Grace Gimo (Zimbabwe)

21 February 2026 (2026-02-21)

15:30

Malawi	8–1	Lesotho
Khumalo 4', 44' Henry 10', 11', 45+2' Chikupila 39' V. Mkandawire 50' Phikani 57'	Report	Moalosi 71'

Seshego Stadium, Seshego

Referee: Laurinda Caluvi (Angola)

---

24 February 2026 (2026-02-24)

15:00

Angola	v	Malawi

Old Peter Mokaba Stadium, Polokwane

24 February 2026 (2026-02-24)

15:00

South Africa	v	Lesotho

Seshego Stadium, Seshego

Group B

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Zambia	2	1	1	0	3	0	+3	4	Advance to knockout stage
2	Zimbabwe	2	1	1	0	2	0	+2	4	Possible knockout stage
3	Eswatini	2	0	1	1	1	3	−2	1
4	Botswana	2	0	1	1	1	4	−3	1

Updated to match(es) played on 22 February 2026. Source: COSAFA
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers

19 February 2026 (2026-02-19)

12:00

Eswatini	0–2	Zimbabwe
	Report	Zvawanda 38' Makore 53'

Old Peter Mokaba Stadium, Polokwane

Referee: Rose Zimba (Malawi)

19 February 2026 (2026-02-19)

15:00

Zambia	3–0	Botswana
Chanda 16' Banda 45+1' Mupopo 72'	Report

Old Peter Mokaba Stadium, Polokwane

Referee: Nonjabulo Ndlela (South Africa)

---

22 February 2026 (2026-02-22)

12:00

Botswana	1–1	Eswatini
Mamela 23'	Report	Mokgale 38'

Seshego Stadium, Seshego

Referee: Mathapelo Morake (Lesotho)

22 February 2026 (2026-02-22)

15:00

Zambia	0–0	Zimbabwe
	Report

Seshego Stadium, Seshego

Referee: Rose Zimba (Malawi)

---

24 February 2026 (2026-02-24)

12:00

Zimbabwe	v	Botswana

Seshego Stadium, Seshego

24 February 2026 (2026-02-24)

12:00

Zambia	v	Eswatini

Old Peter Mokaba Stadium, Polokwane

Group C

Pos	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	Namibia	1	1	0	0	2	0	+2	3	Advance to knockout stage
2	Madagascar	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	Possible knockout stage
3	Mozambique	1	0	0	1	0	2	−2	0

Updated to match(es) played on 20 February 2026. Source: COSAFA
Rules for classification: Tiebreakers

20 February 2026 (2026-02-20)

15:00

Mozambique	0–2	Namibia
	Report	Alweendo 2' Hikuam 78'

Old Peter Mokaba Stadium, Polokwane

Referee: Élodie Livaharivony (Madagascar)

---

23 February 2026 (2026-02-23)

15:00

Namibia	v	Madagascar

Seshego Stadium, Seshego

---

25 February 2026 (2026-02-25)

15:00

Mozambique	v	Madagascar

Old Peter Mokaba Stadium, Polokwane

Ranking of second-place teams

Due to groups having a different number of teams, the results against the fourth-placed teams in four-team groups were not considered for this ranking.

Pos	Grp	Team	Pld	W	D	L	GF	GA	GD	Pts	Qualification
1	B	Zimbabwe	2	1	1	0	2	0	+2	4	Advance to knockout stage
2	C	Madagascar	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
3	A	Malawi	1	0	0	1	0	2	−2	0

Updated to match(es) played on 22 February 2026. Source: COSAFA

Knockout stage

In the semi-finals, matches level after 90 minutes were decided by a penalty shoot-out, while extra-time (followed by penalties if required) will be used only in the final. ^[17]

Bracket

	Semi-finals				Final
	27 February – Polokwane
	Winner Group B/A
					1 March – Polokwane
	Winner Group C
					Winner SF1
	27 February – Polokwane
					Winner SF2
	Winner Group A/B
	Best second-placed team
					3rd place playoff
					1 March – Polokwane
					Loser SF1
					Loser SF2

Semi-finals

27 February 2026 (2026-02-27)

12:00

Winner B/A	v	Winner C

New Peter Mokaba Stadium, Polokwane

---

27 February 2026 (2026-02-27)

15:00

Winner A/B	v	Best 2nd placed team

New Peter Mokaba Stadium, Polokwane

Third place play-off

1 March 2026 (2026-03-01)

12:00

Loser M16	v	Loser M17

New Peter Mokaba Stadium, Polokwane

Final

1 March 2026 (2026-03-01)

15:00

Winner M16	v	Winner M17

New Peter Mokaba Stadium, Polokwane

Goalscorers

There have been 26 goals scored in 9 matches, for an average of 2.89 goals per match (as of 22 February 2026).

3 goals

• Deborah Henry

2 goals

• Makhotso Moalosi
• Ireen Khumalo

1 goal

• Arminda Lopes
• Cristina Makua
• Maria Viera
• Nolofatso Mamela
• Nonjabuliso Mokgale
• Vanessa Chikupila
• Vitumbiko Mkandawire
• Olivia Phikani
• Leena Alweendo
• Millicent Hikuam
• Sibulele Holweni
• Bonolo Mokoma
• Nonhlanhla Mthandi
• Gabriela Salgado
• Susan Banda
• Regina Chanda
• Kabange Mupopo
• Rutendo Makore
• Praynence Zvawanda

Source: COSAFA

Broadcasting rights

Country	Broadcaster	Ref.
World	FIFA+	[21]
	COSAFA on YouTube	[21]

References

1. "COSAFA announces dates for Women's tournaments". kick442.com. 24 January 2026. Retrieved 2 February 2026.
2. Zondi, Asanda (3 February 2025). "COSAFA Women's Championship 2026 kicks off in SA". channelafrica.co.za. Retrieved 3 February 2026.
3. Willis, Seth (2 November 2024). "Champions of Southern Africa! Zambia's Copper Queens beat Banyana Banyana to clinch 2024 Cosafa Women's Championship". Goal . Retrieved 2 February 2026.
4. Mbabala, John (21 October 2025). "South Africa Gives Up Hosting of COSAFA Women's Championship". bolanews.co. Retrieved 1 February 2026.
5. Goodman, Tivana (21 October 2025). "COSAFA postpones 2025 Women's Championship due to hosting challenges". channelafrica.co.za. Retrieved 1 February 2026.
6. Fakudze, Machawe (7 January 2026). "COSAFA Women's Championship still without a home". Times of Eswatini . Retrieved 2 February 2026.
7. "COSAFA Women's Championship to provide fine-tune for WAFCON". COSAFA. 23 January 2026. Retrieved 2 February 2026.
8. "Angola, Botswana, Eswatini HOLLYWOODBETS COSAFA Women's Championship Profiles". COSAFA. 9 February 2026. Retrieved 9 February 2026.
9. Fakudze, Machawe (23 January 2026). "COSAFA Women's Champs kick off road to Brazil". Times of Eswatini . Retrieved 2 February 2026.
10. "Mehalalitoe back at work on Monday ahead of COSAFA tourney". africatopsports.com. 18 January 2026. Retrieved 2 February 2026.
11. "Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi HOLLYWOODBETS COSAFA Women's Championship Profiles". COSAFA. 10 February 2026. Retrieved 17 February 2026.
12. "Fazili Names 32 for Scorchers COSAFA Championship Preparations". Lilongwe: Football Association of Malawi. 30 January 2026. Retrieved 2 February 2026.
13. "Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa HOLLYWOODBETS COSAFA Women's Championship profiles". COSAFA. 11 February 2026. Retrieved 17 February 2026.
14. Sichula, Augustine (31 January 2026). "Football Association of Zambia confirms Copper Queens' participation in 2026 COSAFA championship". zambiamonitor.com. Retrieved 2 February 2026.
15. "Zambia and Zimbabwe HOLLYWOODBETS COSAFA Women's Championship profiles". COSAFA. 12 February 2026. Retrieved 17 February 2026.
16. "ZIFA names Might Warriors provisional squad for 2026 Women's COSAFA". newzimbabwe.com. 27 January 2026. Retrieved 2 February 2026.
17. "Regulations for the HOLLYWOODBETS COSAFA Women's Championship 2025". COSAFA. 13 February 2026. Retrieved 17 February 2026.
18. "HOLLYWOODBETS COSAFA Women's Championship 2025 to be staged in Polokwane". COSAFA. 4 February 2026. Retrieved 4 February 2026.
19. "Draw is in…". neweralive.na. 4 February 2026. Retrieved 4 February 2026.
20. "Fixtures revealed for Hollywoodbets Cosafa Women Championship". The Namibian. 5 February 2026. Retrieved 5 February 2026.
21. Sob, Willis (4 February 2026). "COSAFA Women's Championship 2025: Groups, Predictions and where to watch". afrik-foot.com. Retrieved 5 February 2026.