By Dorcas Francis Koji
Zambia booked their place in the quarter-finals of the 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations after defeating Malawi 2-1 in a tense Group C encounter on Wednesday, surviving one of the tournament’s most dramatic qualification battles.
The Copper Queens knew only victory would keep their hopes of progressing alive after suffering a narrow 1-0 defeat to defending champions Nigeria in their previous outing. They responded with a determined display, overcoming tournament debutants Malawi to secure all three points.
Captain Barbra Banda once again led by example, opening the scoring early in the contest to give Zambia the perfect start. The striker’s clinical finish settled the nerves of her teammates and handed the Copper Queens the early advantage in a must-win encounter.
Zambia continued to press forward and doubled their lead before the hour mark, putting themselves in a commanding position as they sought a place in the knockout stage.
Malawi, who had stunned Nigeria in their opening match and defeated Egypt to top the group before kick-off, refused to surrender. The Scorchers pulled a goal back through star forward Temwa Chawinga, setting up a tense finale as they searched for the equaliser that would have secured qualification.
Despite relentless late pressure from the tournament debutants, Zambia’s defence stood firm to preserve the 2-1 victory.
The result lifted Zambia onto six points, level with Malawi and Nigeria, forcing the final Group C standings to be decided by the Confederation of African Football’s tie-breaking regulations after Nigeria defeated Egypt 6-2 in the other group fixture.
Although Zambia claimed victory, the qualification calculations proved complicated as head-to-head results, goal difference and goals scored among the tied teams were applied to separate the three nations.
The dramatic evening ultimately saw both Zambia and Nigeria progress to the quarter-finals, while Malawi’s remarkable debut campaign came to an end despite earning six points from three matches.
For Zambia, the victory highlighted the quality of a squad led by Barbra Banda and Racheal Kundananji, who once again demonstrated why the Copper Queens remain one of Africa’s strongest attacking teams.
While Malawi bowed out, the Scorchers left Morocco with plenty of admiration after announcing themselves on the continental stage, recording memorable victories and proving they can compete with Africa’s elite.
Zambia will now shift their attention to the quarter-finals as they continue their pursuit of a first Women’s Africa Cup of Nations title.
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