SA, Zambia to clash in both boys and girls finals 

Hosts South Africa and Zambia will meet in the finals of both the Boys and Girls competitions at the CAF African Schools Football Championship | Cosafa Qualifier at the Idas Valley Sports Complex in Stellenbosch on Sunday.

Both came through tough semi-final contests and will compete for a place as Cosafa’s representatives in the Continental Finals next year.

Sunday’s third-place play-offs and final matches in both competitions will be live on CAF TV and Cosafa’s YouTube Channel.

South Africa sealed their place in the Boys final with a 2-0 win over Eswatini in their semi-final clash, the fourth year in a row they have reached the decider.

The South Africans have lifted the trophy in the previous three years, but Zambia will be looking to break their dominance.

Zambia defeated Malawi 3-0 in their semi-final to set up their clash with South Africa, which will be played at 12:00 local time (10:00 GMT).

South Africa claimed top spot in Group A in the Boys competition with a vital 2-0 win over Zimbabwe, leapfrogging the latter to seal semi-final qualification.

Zambia’s 6-0 win over Comoros ensured they were winners of Group B, while Malawi’s 1-0 win over Botswana booked their spot too from Group C.

Eswatini finished as the best runner-up by virtue of goals scored. When taking away the 2-0 win against Namibia in the four-team Group A, runners-up Zimbabwe had three points and a -1 goal difference. Both Eswatini and Botswana, who finished second in their pools, had three points and a 0 goal difference, but Eswatini scored four goals in their two games and Botswana only one, which took the former through to the semi-finals.

Defending champions South Africa needed penalties to see off Zimbabwe in their Girls semi-final after the match had finished 1-1. They triumphed 4-3 on spot-kicks after Zimbabwe failed to convert twice.

Like the Boys, South Africa have lifted the Girls trophy for the last three years and are on course for a quadruple triumph but will face a stern test against a lively Zambia side.

Zambia were made to work hard but claimed a 2-0 win over Malawi in the Girls semi-final. Their final with South Africa will be played at 11:00 local time (09:00 GMT).

South Africa sealed their place in the semi-finals with a 3-1 win over Zimbabwe in their final pool game, but the latter qualified for the last four as the best runner-up.

They then met again in the semis, and it was closer the second time round.

Zambia defeated Comoros 11-0 in their final Group B game for the biggest win of the tournament to date, while Malawi beat Botswana 2-0 to top Group C.

The winners of the CAF African Schools Football Championship | Cosafa Qualifier this year will receive USD100 000, with the runners-up taking home USD75 000, and the bronze medalists getting USD50 000.

The CAF African Schools Football Championship has been spearheaded by CAF President Dr Patrice Motsepe, with the Motsepe Foundation providing a USD 10-million investment into the competition.

The current holders of the continental title in the Boys competition are Tanzania, while the Girls champions are Ghana.

The 2025 finals were played in Accra, Ghana, and the winners each walked away with USD300 000 in prize money. The runners-up received USD200 000, while the bronze medalists took home USD150 000.

This prize money is to be used for infrastructure development at schools, and many teams have invested in educational and sporting aids for their learners.

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