The Zambia Under-20 national team has been drawn in Group A for the upcoming U-20 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), which will now be hosted by Egypt following the withdrawal of original hosts Ivory Coast.
The tournament, which also serves as a qualifier for the FIFA U-20 World Cup, is scheduled to run from 27 April to 18 May 2025.
In Group A, the Junior Chipolopolo will face hosts Egypt, Sierra Leone, South Africa, and Tanzania. Egypt has won the tournament three times, while Zambia is the only other team in the group to have lifted the title in 2017 on home soil.
Under head coach Boyd Mulwanda, the Zambian squad has already commenced preparations for the competition. FAZ President Andrew Kamanga confirmed that friendly matches will be part of the build-up to the tournament.
“As part of our usual high-level preparations for our teams, we will afford the team friendly matches in Egypt with opponents already secured,” Kamanga said on Monday. “The technical bench has cast their net wide to include some foreign-based players to boost the squad. Our target is to ensure that the team secures a FIFA World Cup ticket.”
The tournament will feature three groups: Group A has five teams, while Groups B and C consist of four teams each. Group B includes record seven-time champions Nigeria, former winners Tunisia, Kenya, and Morocco. Defending champions Senegal headline Group C alongside the Central African Republic, DR Congo, and former FIFA U-20 World Cup winners Ghana.
Zambia Eyeing Fourth World Cup Qualification
The top two teams from each group, along with the two best third-placed teams, will progress to the quarter-finals. The four semifinalists will qualify for the 2025 FIFA U-20 World Cup, which will be hosted by Chile.
Zambia has qualified for the FIFA U-20 World Cup three times: in 1999, 2007, and 2017. Their best performance came in 2017, when they reached the quarter-finals before being eliminated by Italy in extra time.
They captured global attention with an impressive showing at the 2017 edition in South Korea. They topped Group C with back-to-back wins over European and Asian giants.
The Junior Chipolopolo began their campaign with a thrilling 2-1 victory over Portugal. They followed it up with a comeback 4-2 win against Iran.
The team will now look to replicate the class of 2017 this year.
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