Mzansi teams called to retain COSAFA African Schools Championship
The U-15 Schools Football National teams have left the country to Namibia to defend the COSAFA Championships trophies they won in 2023.
The Department of Sport, Arts and Culture in partnership with the Department of Basic Education, Gauteng Government, and SAFA invite hosted a send-off that took place at SAFA’s Fun Valley Resort on Tuesday, October 8.
The Government has called on South Africans to rally behind the teams and show their support using the hashtag #BringBothHome on social media.
South Africa will participate in both Boys and Girls categories during the regional Championships in Namibia.
Following a double victory at the 2024 National School Sport Football Under 15 Championships earlier this year, about 15 Gauteng players have been selected for the boys’ and girls’ teams that will represent the country in the regional tournament. Four local footballers have made the girls’ squad, while most of the players from the boys team are from Gauteng at 11, with a notable eight coming from Clapham High School.
In the function, the young champions were given certificates and trophies for their participation in the upcoming soccer showdown.
Fixtures for the COSAFA Schools Championship
The teams will be split into two pools each containing four sides, and will play each other in a round-robin format with the top two in each group advancing to the semifinals.
A single draw will be made for both the Boys and Girls competitions as they feature the same competing nations.
Namibia, as hosts, will be the top seeds in Group A and defending champions South Africa, who have won the Boys and Girls competitions for the last two years, will be the seeds in Group B.
Malawi and Zimbabwe will be in Pot 1 as the two higher ranked nations and one of each will be drawn into Groups A or B. Angola, Eswatini, Lesotho and Zambia make up Pot 2 and will also be drawn to complete the pools.
The group fixtures will be played on Friday and Saturday on two pitches at the Jan Wilken Stadium in Walvis Bay, with Boys and Girls fixtures running concurrently.
The matches start at 09h00 CAT (07h00 GMT) on Friday, with the final kick-off at 15h30.
The groups will be completed on Saturday starting at 09h00, with the semifinals fixtures that afternoon kicking off at 15h00 and 16h00.
The games are played as 11-per-side but each half lasts 20 minutes with a 10-minute break between.
The Girls final will be played on Sunday at 09h00 and the Boys’ decider at 10h00.
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