COSAFA U-17 Youth Championship

Last updated
COSAFA U-17 Youth Championship
Founded1994;31 years ago (1994)
Region Southern Africa
Number of teams12 (as of 2024)
Current championsFlag of Zambia.svg  Zambia (4th title)
Most successful team(s)Flag of Zambia.svg  Zambia
(4 titles)
Website COSAFA.com
Soccerball current event.svg 2024 COSAFA Under-17 Championship

The COSAFA U-17 Youth Championship, also known as the COSAFA U-17 Men's Championship, is an international youth football championship organised by COSAFA for the men's under-17 national teams of Southern Africa.

Contents

South Africa and Zambia are the most successful teams in this competition, having won three titles each. The Junior Chipolopolo are the current champions. [1]

History

Established in 1994, the first regional under-17 championship was held in South Africa, featuring nine teams, and was won by the host nation's Amajimbos. [2] The competition would not be held again for another seven years, returning in 2001 in Malawi, with Blantyre and Lilongwe serving as host cities. Malawi emerged victorious on home soil, defeating the defending champions South Africa 3–0 in the final. [2] In the following year's edition, the number of participants dropped to four, with a round-robin format. South Africa went on to be crowned champions, claiming their second title. [3] again the tournament went on a haitus for five years and returned in 2007, with 10 teams participating, Zimbabwe claimed their first title by defeating two-time champions South Africa in a penalty shootout. [4] After a nine-year absence, the tournament was revived in 2016 and has been held annually since then. Hosted in Mauritius, Namibia became the fourth team to lift the trophy, defeating the most successful team at the time, South Africa in a penalty shootout. [5] The following year, Zambia joined the list of winning teams by defeating host nation Mauritius 3–0 in the final. [6] In 2018, the tournament became the regional qualifier for the continental U-17 Africa Cup of Nations. Angola won their first trophy and along with South Africa qualified for the continental finals. [7]

Format

The format of the tournament has varied across editions, depending on the number of teams participating. When fewer than six teams entered, the tournament typically followed a single round-robin format, with an optional final between the top two teams. If six or more teams participated, the competition was held in two stages: a group stage with a single round-robin format, where each team played against the others in their group, with the top four teams across all groups advancing to the semi-finals. A final and a third-place match were then held, though the third-place match was removed starting in 2024.

Participation

The competition is open to all 14 COSAFA members, as well as the COSAFA associate member, Réunion. Similar to other COSAFA tournaments, The competition was previously open to CECAFA members, who were invited to participate when the tournament did not serve as a qualifier for the finals.

Results

Ed.YearHostFinalThird place gameNum.
teams
Gold medal icon.svg ChampionsScoreSilver medal icon.svg Runners-upBronze medal icon.svg Third placeScoreFourth place
1 1994 Flag of South Africa.svg  South Africa Flag of South Africa.svg
South Africa
2–1Flag of Mozambique.svg
Mozambique
Flag of Zambia (1964-1996).svg
Zambia
1–0Flag of Zimbabwe.svg
Zimbabwe
9
2 2001 Flag of Malawi.svg  Malawi Flag of Malawi.svg
Malawi
3–0Flag of South Africa.svg
South Africa
Flag of Zambia.svg
Zambia
1–0Flag of Eswatini.svg
Swaziland
11
3 2002 Flag of South Africa.svg  South Africa Flag of South Africa.svg
South Africa
Round-robin Flag of Eswatini.svg
Swaziland
Flag of Botswana.svg
Botswana
Round-robin Flag of Lesotho (1987-2006).svg
Lesotho
4
4 2007 Flag of Namibia.svg  Namibia Flag of Zimbabwe.svg
Zimbabwe
1–1
(4–2 p)
Flag of South Africa.svg
South Africa
Flag of Zambia.svg
Zambia
1–0Flag of Malawi.svg
Malawi
10
5 2016 Flag of Mauritius.svg  Mauritius Flag of Namibia.svg
Namibia
1–1
(3–1 p)
Flag of South Africa.svg
South Africa
Flag of Malawi.svg
Malawi
2–0Flag of Kenya.svg
Kenya
7
6 2017 Flag of Mauritius.svg  Mauritius Flag of Zambia.svg
Zambia
3–0Flag of Mauritius.svg
Mauritius
Flag of Malawi.svg
Malawi
2–1Flag of South Africa.svg
South Africa
8
7 2018 Flag of Mauritius.svg  Mauritius Flag of Angola.svg
Angola
1–0Flag of South Africa.svg
South Africa
Flag of Namibia.svg
Namibia
2–1Flag of Mauritius.svg
Mauritius
12
8 2019 Flag of Malawi.svg  Malawi Flag of Zambia.svg
Zambia
2–0Flag of Mozambique.svg
Mozambique
Flag of Angola.svg
Angola
5–0Flag of Eswatini.svg
Eswatini
8
9 2020 Flag of South Africa.svg  South Africa Flag of South Africa.svg
South Africa
1–1
(4–2 p)
Flag of Zambia.svg
Zambia
Flag of Angola.svg
Angola
2–1Flag of Malawi.svg
Malawi
4
10 2021 Flag of Lesotho.svg  Lesotho Flag of Angola.svg
Angola
2–1Flag of Zambia.svg
Zambia
Flag of Malawi.svg
Malawi
4–0Flag of Eswatini.svg
Eswatini
6
11 2022 Flag of Malawi.svg  Malawi Flag of Zambia.svg
Zambia
1–0Flag of South Africa.svg
South Africa
Flag of Malawi.svg
Malawi
5–2Flag of Botswana.svg
Botswana
7
Ed.YearHostFinalLosing semi-finalistsNum.
teams
Gold medal icon.svg ChampionsScoreSilver medal icon.svg Runners-up
12 2024 Flag of South Africa.svg  South Africa Flag of Zambia.svg
Zambia
2–1Flag of Angola.svg
Angola
Flag of South Africa.svg
South Africa
andFlag of Zimbabwe.svg
Zimbabwe
12
COSAFA Under-17 Championship archive on the RSSSF's website

Medals (1994-2024)

RankNationGoldSilverBronzeTotal
1Flag of Zambia.svg  Zambia 4239
2Flag of South Africa.svg  South Africa 3519
3Flag of Angola.svg  Angola 2125
4Flag of Malawi.svg  Malawi 1045
5Flag of Namibia.svg  Namibia 1012
Flag of Zimbabwe.svg  Zimbabwe 1012
7Flag of Mozambique.svg  Mozambique 0202
8Flag of Eswatini.svg  Eswatini 0101
Flag of Mauritius.svg  Mauritius 0101
10Flag of Botswana.svg  Botswana 0011
Totals (10 entries)12121337

Participating nations

Comprehensive team results by tournament

Legend:
NationFlag of South Africa.svg
1994
Flag of Malawi.svg
2001
Flag of South Africa.svg
2002
Flag of Namibia.svg
2007
Flag of Mauritius.svg
2016
Flag of Mauritius.svg
2017
Flag of Mauritius.svg
2018
Flag of Malawi.svg
2019
Flag of South Africa.svg
2020
Flag of Lesotho.svg
2021
Flag of Malawi.svg
2022
Flag of South Africa.svg
2024
Total
Flag of Angola.svg  Angola GSGS1st3rd3rd1st2nd7
Flag of Botswana.svg  Botswana GSGS3rdGSGSGSDQGS4thGS9
Flag of the Comoros.svg  Comoros GSDQGS2
Flag of Eswatini.svg  Eswatini GS4th2ndGSGS4thDQ4thGS8
Flag of Lesotho.svg  Lesotho GSGS4thGSGSGSGSGS8
Flag of Madagascar.svg  Madagascar GSGSGS3
Flag of Malawi.svg  Malawi GS1st4th3rd3rdGSGS4th3rd3rdGS11
Flag of Mauritius.svg  Mauritius GSGSGS2nd4thGS6
Flag of Mozambique.svg  Mozambique 2ndDQGSGS2ndGSGS6
Flag of Namibia.svg  Namibia GSGSGS1st3rdGSGS7
Flag of Seychelles.svg  Seychelles GSGSGS3
Flag of South Africa.svg  South Africa 1st2nd1st2nd2nd4th2ndGS1st2ndSF11
Flag of Zambia.svg  Zambia 3rd3rd3rdDQ1stGS1st2nd2nd1st1st10
Flag of Zimbabwe.svg  Zimbabwe 4thGS1stGSGSDQSF6
Guest nations
Flag of Kenya.svg  Kenya 4th1

Awards

TournamentPlayer of the TournamentGolden BootGoalsGolden GloveFair Play Trophy
Flag of South Africa.svg 1994 South Africa Flag of South Africa.svg Junaid Hartley
7
Flag of Malawi.svg 2001 Malawi Flag of Malawi.svg Robert Ng'ambi
4
Flag of South Africa.svg 2002 South Africa Flag of South Africa.svg Lebogang Mokoena
6
Flag of Namibia.svg 2007 Namibia
Flag of Mauritius.svg 2016 Mauritius Flag of Malawi.svg Peter Banda
5
Flag of Mauritius.svg 2017 Mauritius Flag of Mauritius.svg Yannick Aristide Flag of Zambia.svg Martin Njobvu
6
Flag of Malawi.svg Kennedy Nankhaima
Flag of Mauritius.svg 2018 Mauritius Flag of Angola.svg Zito Luvumbo Flag of Namibia.svg Prins Tjiueza
6
Flag of Malawi.svg 2019 Malawi Flag of Zambia.svg Moses Mulenga Flag of Mozambique.svg Simon Cipriano
Flag of Angola.svg Miro
Flag of Zambia.svg Rickson Ng'ambi
5
Flag of Zambia.svg Iford Mwale Flag of Eswatini.svg  Eswatini
Flag of South Africa.svg 2020 South Africa Flag of South Africa.svg Mduduzi Shabalala Flag of Zambia.svg Joseph Banda
5
Flag of Zambia.svg Eric Makungu Flag of Zambia.svg  Zambia
Flag of Lesotho.svg 2021 Lesotho Flag of Zambia.svg Joseph Banda Flag of Malawi.svg Masambiro Kalua
Flag of Zambia.svg Joseph Banda
5
Flag of Angola.svg Ariola Flag of Eswatini.svg  Eswatini
Flag of Malawi.svg 2022 Malawi Flag of South Africa.svg Siyabonga Mabena Flag of South Africa.svg Siyabonga Mabena
9
Flag of South Africa.svg Gennaro Johnson Flag of Botswana.svg  Botswana
Flag of South Africa.svg 2024 South Africa Flag of Zambia.svg Mapalo Simute Flag of Zambia.svg Abel Nyirongo
7
Flag of Angola.svg Gelson Dala Flag of Angola.svg  Angola

References

  1. "Zambia Wins 2022 COSAFA Men's U17 Cup". lusakatimes.com. 11 December 2022. Retrieved 11 December 2024.
  2. 1 2 "History of the COSAFA Men's Under-17 Championships". cosafa.com. COSAFA. 14 November 2024. Retrieved 11 December 2024.
  3. "24 years of the COSAFA U17 Championship". safa.net. South African Football Association. 20 June 2018. Retrieved 11 December 2024.
  4. "Zimbabwe Wins COSAFA U/17 Cup". neweralive.na. 17 December 2007. Retrieved 11 December 2024.
  5. "Namibia beat SA to win Cosafa u17 title". namibian.com.na. 31 July 2016. Retrieved 11 December 2024.
  6. "Zambia beat hosts Mauritius to win first Cosafa U-17 title". nehandaradio.com. 31 July 2017. Retrieved 11 December 2024.
  7. "Angola crowned 2018 COSAFA U-17 Champions". soka25east.com. 30 July 2018. Retrieved 11 December 2024.