From as early as the 1990s, Zambian players have graced Europe’s elite topflight leagues, making their mark on foreign soil. Every young player juggling their chimpombwa (homemade soccer ball) in the streets of Lusaka dreams of playing in such competitions.
BolaNews takes you down the memory lane, unveiling football stars who debuted in England, Spain, Italy, Germany or France at a young age. Here is the list of the five youngest Zambian players to feature in Europe’s top five leagues.
Lameck Banda ( 21 years, 196 days)
In the summer of 2022, Lameck Banda put pen to paper, signing for Italian Serie A club US Lecce from Israeli side Maccabi Petah Tikva. During Lecce’s 2-1 defeat to Inter Milan in 2022, Banda etched his name into the history books by becoming the first Zambian to debut in the Italian Serie A.
Aged 21 years and 196 days, the winger came on for Federico di Francesco in the 74th minute of the contest. Three months later, he became the first Zambian to score in the competition with a fine finish against Sampdoria.
Collins Mbesuma (21 years, 191 days )
After watching Collins Mbesuma net 35 goals in 42 appearances for Kaizer Chiefs in South Africa in 2004-05, English Premier League side Portsmouth came chasing after his signature. The striker signed for Portsmouth in mid 2005 and made his league debut in a 2-0 loss against Tottenham Hotspur.
He was only 21 years and 191 days old when he first appeared in the English topflight, replacing Azar Karaskas at 74 minutes. Mbesuma only went on to make three more league appearances for the club before eventually returning to South Africa.
Kingstone Mutandwa (21 years, 58 days)
Kingstone Mutandwa, who was 21 years and 58 days old at the time, made his league debut for Cagliari in March 2024 during a 1-0 win vs Empoli. The centre forward replaced Gianluca Gaetano in the 87th minute of that fixture.
Mutandwa was signed from Atletico Lusaka FC in 2023 and initially played with the youth team. He became one of the first Zambian players to score in the Italian Serie A with a goal vs Fiorentina in 2024. However, the striker struggled for minutes at Cagliari and settled for a loan move to SV Ried in Austria, where he has scored eight goals in 17 league games in 2025-26.
Andrew Sinkala (20 years, 176 days)
Sinkala was one of the first Zambian players to feature in one of Europe’s highly rated leagues. In 1999, he left Nchanga Rangers FC to join FC Bayern Munich’s youth team.
Aged 20 years and 176 days, Sinkala made his debut for the first team in the Bundesliga, coming off the bench in the 79th minute for Paulo Sergio in a 3-0 thrashing of Hansa Rostock in December 1999. He became the first Zambian to play in the German Bundesliga.
That would remain Sinkala’s only outing for FC Bayern Munich in the Bundesliga. However, he went on to make nearly 50 top-flight appearances in Germany for 1. FC Köln and FC Augsburg.
Joseph Liteta (19 years, 246 days)
Liteta etched his name into the history books as the first Zambian teenager and youngest Zambian player to play in England, Spain, Italy, Germany or France. He smashed the record in October of last year after featuring in Cagliari Calcio’s 2-2 draw with Hellas Verona in the Italian Serie A at just 19 years and 246 days.
Even more impressive is the fact that Liteta made his debut in the competition as a starting player. Since then, Liteta has been a regular in Cagliari Calcio’s Italian Serie A matchday squads, earning further starts against Juventus and Parma.
The Chipolopolo star was signed from Atletico Lusaka FC in 2024 and has risen through the ranks after impressing in the middle of the park for Cagliari’s youth team.
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