HOLLYWOODBETS COSAFA Women’s Championship 2025 to be staged in Polokwane

The 13th edition of the HOLLYWOODBETS COSAFA Women’s Championship will be staged in Polokwane, South Africa, from February 18 to March 1, 2026, providing excellent preparation for the three Southern African nations that will take part in the TotalEnergies CAF Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) 2026.

Eleven teams from across the region will do battle for the coveted trophy, utilising the infrastructure of the City of Polokwane, as Angola, Botswana, Eswatini, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe compete for the regional crown.

Hosts South Africa are the top seeds in Group A and have been drawn against 2023 champions Malawi, Lesotho and Angola in a tough pool.

Group B contains defending champions Zambia, along with Botswana, Eswatini and Zimbabwe, another pool that is expected to be tightly contested.

Group C has three teams and includes Mozambique, Namibia and Madagascar.

The top team in each pool will advance to the semi-finals, along with the best runner-up. Because there are three teams in Group C, results against the bottom sides in Groups A and B will be disregarded for the purposes of that calculation.

Matches will be broadcast live on FIFA+ and COSAFA’s YouTube channel.

For South Africa, Zambia and Malawi, the tournament will provide vital preparation for their TotalEnergies CAF WAFCON 2026 campaigns, with the continental finals scheduled to take place from March 17 to April 3.

The TotalEnergies CAF WAFCON 2026 is a vital tournament, as the four semi-finalists will automatically secure qualification for the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup in Brazil.

But beyond that, the HOLLYWOODBETS COSAFA Women’s Championship 2025 will be another exciting instalment of a competition that has captured the imagination of fans across the region since it was first played in 2002.

Zambia are the defending champions after defeating South Africa 4-3 on penalties following a 0-0 draw in the final of the 2024 edition, which was staged in Gqeberha.

South Africa are the record seven-time winners, with the only other teams to lift the trophy being Zambia (2022, 2024), Zimbabwe (2011), East African guest nation Tanzania (2021) and Malawi (2023).

There is no doubt that this tournament, along with the regular staging of other COSAFA women’s and girls’ competitions, has been a catalyst for the success of national teams from the region.

Players such as Temwa Chawinga, who is excelling in the National Women’s Soccer League in the United States with Kansas City, Barbra Banda, and South Africa’s Thembi Kgatlana have cut their teeth at international level in this competition before going on to achieve success at the highest level.

It will be fascinating to see which stars of tomorrow could emerge at this year’s tournament.

HOLLYWOODBETS COSAFA WOMEN’S CHAMPIONSHIP 2025 DRAW

GROUP A
South Africa
Malawi
Lesotho
Angola

GROUP B
Zambia
Botswana
Eswatini
Zimbabwe

GROUP C
Mozambique
Namibia
Madagascar