Zambia will wear a special edition KoPa jersey for the Africa Cup of Nations, which will begin on January 13, 2024.

During an end-of-year media interaction on Wednesday evening, Football Association of Zambia (FAZ) president Andrew Kamanga confirmed the development.

He said the Chipolopolo’s special edition shirt will have a star representing their 2012 AfCON victory.

“You will see the Chipolopolo Boys in a special edition KoPa jersey,” Kamanga told journalists. “It will have a star on it and will be unveiled on January 17, 2024.”

The KoPa brand was launched in 2016 and has been in use ever since. It is also said to have helped FAZ generate over nine million kwacha in the previous fiscal year.

Kamanga said in April this year that the “sale of Kopa replicas fetched K2,700,779.”

FAZ warns counterfeit KoPa traders

The brand’s demand has skyrocketed ahead of the Africa Cup. However, Kamanga is disappointed with the counterfeit KoPa products on the market.

“Unfortunately, there has been a proliferation of counterfeit replica jerseys on the market, which unscrupulous traders are taking advantage of to sell to unsuspecting customers.

“Let me take this opportunity to warn the people who are selling these counterfeit Kopa products that what they are doing is criminal and that we are working closely with the authorities to bring the culprits to book.

Meanwhile, the Chipolopolo Boys entered camp yesterday in Lusaka. They will next travel to Saudi Arabia, where they will play a friendly match against Cameroon before flying to San Pedro in Ivory Coast. 

They will open their AfCON campaign on January 17, 2024, against the DR Congo.

Zambia, who are returning to the tournament for the first time since 2015, are in Group F, along with Morocco, Tanzania, and the DR Congo.