With COSAFA having five participating countries at the upcoming Africa Cup of Nations, Southern African teams now have a big point to prove to the rest of the continent at the tournament. KickOff's Lukhanyo Mtuta explains!
The Council of Southern Africa Football Associations (COSAFA) is a 14-member organsisation, including Angola, Botswana, Comoros, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mozambique, Namibia, Seychelles, South Africa, Swaziland, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and Associate Member Reunion.
No nation from the region has won Afcon since Zambia's historic cup glory back in the 2012 edition. More than a decade later, no COSAFA side has even reached the final, as the west and northern African countries have established a strong hold over the competition.
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There are compelling reasons why that should change, however, as there's now an emerging paradigm shift in continental club football. This is perhaps owed to the recent success of Mamelodi Sundowns and Petro de Luanda of Angola in CAF competitions. Masandawana won the inaugural African Football League in November, claiming the R75 million title after overcoming giants like Al Ahly and Wydad Casablanca.
The core of Bafana Bafana now comprises 10 Sundowns players, while more than two thirds of the Namibia's Afcon squad are based in the southern region. Mozambique also comprises a team loaded with players who ply their trade on home shores, whilst Angola may be somewhat of an exception given that their final squad includes many foreign-based stars.
Nevertheless, Namibia beat five-time Afcon winners Cameroon to qualify for the tournament and South Africa beat CAF's number one ranked team Morocco to book their place in the Ivory Coast. Zambia topped their qualification group, finishing ahead of the hosts Cote d'Ivoire despite the country being guaranteed automatic qualification.
Clearly, the COSAFA affiliates have stepped up over the last few years and there's a justifiable belief that one of the five participating nations could make a deep run in the competition. While none of them are favourites to win, there is every point to prove for these Sub-Saharan countries need to start performing at Afcon, as one could argue that all five of them are better equipped to compete against historic powerhouses like Egypt, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, and Nigeria.
Results show that Mozambique, who will be captained by Elias Pelembe, last qualified for Afcon in 2010, Zambia failed to qualify in 2017, 2019, and 2021, while South Africa and Namibia were last involved in the tournament in 2019.
The reality is that this edition marks a special occasion for COSAFA team, as the tournament will now comprise a handful of them for the first time in history.
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