Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi HOLLYWOODBETS COSAFA Women’s Championship Profiles

The HOLLYWOODBETS COSAFA Women’s Championship 2025 will be staged in Polokwane, South Africa from February 18-March 1, 2026. It will feature 11 teams and we bring you profiles of three of those sides, Lesotho, Madagascar and Malawi.

LESOTHO
Best finish: Group Stages (2002, 2006, 2008, 2011, 2017, 2018, 2020, 2022, 2023)
FIFA Ranking: 177
CAF Ranking: 40
Last five tournaments:
2020 – Group Stage
2021 – Did not enter
2022 – Group Stage
2023 – Group Stage
2024 – Group Stage

Lesotho have been relatively regular competitors at the HOLLYWOODBETS COSAFA Women’s Championship since the inaugural tournament in 2002, although they did not take part in the 2019 or 2021 editions.

They did not get off to the best of starts in their maiden appearance in 2002, suffering a 15-0 defeat to hosts Zimbabwe in their opener, followed by a 3-0 loss to Malawi and a 3-1 defeat to Zambia.

It did not improve significantly in 2006, as they lost 9-0 to South Africa and 3-0 to Malawi in a three-team group.

They came close to semi-final qualification in 2011 when they defeated Mozambique 3-2 but lost to Malawi in their play-off decider.

In 2017, they claimed a solid 2-1 victory over Namibia in pool play but were beaten by South Africa and Botswana, both by 3-0 scorelines.

Lesotho returned in 2018 but lost all three matches, going down to Zambia (2-0), Mozambique (2-1) and Central African guest nation Cameroon (6-0) to finish bottom of their pool.

After skipping 2019, the side returned in 2020 but again lost both matches in a three-team pool, going down 8-0 to Zambia and 9-0 to Malawi.

They returned in 2022 after missing the previous edition and, despite winning their opening match 3-0 against Eswatini, went on to lose to Zambia (7-0) and Namibia (2-0).

Lesotho lost all three games in 2023, against Zimbabwe (1-0), Botswana (3-0) and Namibia (2-0).

They managed a draw with Mozambique in 2024 but also lost to Zimbabwe (3-0) in a three-team pool to bow out at the group stage.

Lesotho played their first international match in 1998 away to Mozambique, losing 3-0, and have yet to qualify for the TotalEnergies CAF Women’s Africa Cup of Nations.

MADAGASCAR
Best finish: Group Stages (2017, 2018, 2019, 2023)
FIFA Ranking: 192
CAF Ranking: 46
Last five tournaments:
2020 – Did not enter
2021 – Did not enter
2022 – Did not enter
2023 – Group Stage
2024 – Group Stage

Madagascar return to the HOLLYWOODBETS COSAFA Women’s Championship for the third year in a row after missing the previous three tournaments.

The COVID-19 pandemic had a significant impact on women’s football in the country, with the national team becoming inactive to the extent that they lost their FIFA ranking, though they are now back on the rankings list.

Their return to the COSAFA event in recent years represents a fresh start and an opportunity for the team to regain momentum and rebuild what had been a promising early venture into the women’s game.

Madagascar made their debut at the COSAFA Women’s Championship in Zimbabwe in 2017, which proved a tough introduction. They lost 4-0 to the hosts, followed by a 6-3 defeat to Malawi and a 7-1 loss to Zambia.

They returned the following year and showed marked improvement, earning a draw in a much-improved campaign that highlighted their rapid progress.
They lost 2-1 to eventual champions South Africa and 2-0 to Malawi, but picked up their first point with a 0-0 draw against Botswana.

They went one step further in 2019 by claiming their maiden victory, defeating the Comoros Islands 5-1, though they also lost to Malawi (2-0) and South Africa (3-0).

After missing three years of competition, their return in 2023 proved challenging as they lost all three matches against Eswatini (2-1), South Africa (3-1) and Malawi (3-1). Despite the results, they remained competitive in a demanding pool that included the eventual champions.

They were competitive again in 2024, collecting four points with a win over Mauritius (5-1), a draw with Botswana (0-0) and a narrow loss to Malawi (1-0).

Those results underline Madagascar’s potential, and with a few years of sustained competition, they will hope to fully realise it.

MALAWI
Best finish: Winners (2023)
FIFA Ranking: 153
CAF Ranking: 32
Last five tournaments:
2020 – Semifinals
2021 – Runners-Up
2022 – Group Stage
2023 – Winners
2024 – Semifinals

Malawi claimed their maiden HOLLYWOODBETS COSAFA Women’s Championship title in 2023 when they defeated Zambia 2-1 in the final, becoming the fifth different winner of the regional crown and the fourth team in as many years to lift the trophy.

It capped an outstanding campaign inspired by Temwa Chawinga, who scored nine goals in the tournament.

Malawi began their title run in dramatic fashion by defeating hosts South Africa 4-3 in a thrilling opening match, before emphatic victories over Eswatini (8-0) and Madagascar (3-1) saw them finish top of their pool.

That set up a semi-final against Mozambique, which they edged 2-1, before overcoming the Copper Queens by the same scoreline in the final.

The triumph made amends for the disappointment of finishing runners-up in 2021, when they lost 1-0 to East African guest nation Tanzania in the final.

In that edition, Malawi had finished as the best runners-up in their pool behind hosts South Africa, before going on to beat Banyana Banyana 3-2 in the semi-finals.

Malawi played their first international match at the 2002 COSAFA Women’s Championship but endured a tough introduction, suffering an 8-0 defeat to hosts Zambia.

They bounced back with a 3-0 win over Lesotho to record their first victory, but failed to progress to the knockout stages.

They defeated Lesotho by the same scoreline at the 2006 COSAFA Women’s Championship, but a 3-0 loss to South Africa ended their semi-final hopes.

Malawi did reach the knockout rounds when the tournament was staged in 2011, finishing second in their pool, but once again came unstuck against South Africa with a 5-1 defeat in the semi-finals.
They eventually finished fourth after losing 3-0 to East African guest nation Tanzania in the bronze-medal play-off.

The team experienced mixed fortunes in 2017, losing to Zambia (6-3), drawing with Zimbabwe (3-3) and recording a convincing 6-3 win over Madagascar to finish third in the pool with four points.
It was another mixed campaign in 2018, as a 2-0 win over Madagascar was offset by a 2-0 defeat to Botswana and a heavy 6-0 loss to South Africa.

Malawi continued to show signs of progress in 2019, but again narrowly missed out on the knockout stages. They opened with a 2-0 win over Madagascar, followed by a 3-1 loss to South Africa, before ending pool play with a team-record 13-0 victory over the Comoros Islands.

They returned to the semi-finals in 2020, beginning with a 9-0 win over Lesotho in which Tabitha Chawinga scored six goals, before edging Zambia 1-0 in the decisive match of a three-team pool.
That set up a semi-final against South Africa, but after a goalless first half, Malawi fell 6-2.

In 2022, they failed to advance from their pool after beating the Comoros Islands (6-0), drawing with Botswana (1-1) and losing to Tanzania (3-1).

Following their championship success in 2023, Malawi were contenders again the following year, but their reign came to an end with a 2-0 semi-final defeat to Zambia in 2024.