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2025 COSAFA Under-17 Championship
| Tournament details |
|---|
| Zimbabwe |
| 11–20 September |
| 12 |
| 2 (in 1 host city) |
| South Africa (4th title) |
| Angola |
| Mozambique |
| Comoros |
| 22 |
| 79 (3.59 per match) |
| Pedro Antonio (8 goals) |
| Omphemetse Sekgoto |
| Gelson Joaquim Dala |
| Mozambique |
| ← 2024 2026 → |
The 2025 COSAFA U-17 Youth Championship (officially known as the TotalEnergies U-17 Africa Cup of Nations 2026 — COSAFA Qualifiers) was the 13th edition of the COSAFA U-17 Youth Championship (and the 5th time the tournament served as the qualifiers for the continental final tournament), the international youth football championship organised by COSAFA for the men's under-17 national teams of Southern Africa. Zimbabwe was the host of the tournament.
Zambia were the defending champions, having defeated Angola 2–1 in the final of the previous edition, but failed to make it past the group stage. South Africa won their fourth title defeating Angola 2–1 in the final.
Twelve of the 14 COSAFA member nations entered the competition, which served as the regional qualifying tournament for the 2026 U-17 Africa Cup of Nations.
Note: All statistics exclude instances where the team was disqualified during the tournament.
| Team | Appearance | Last appearance | Previous best performance |
|---|---|---|---|
| Angola | 8th | 2024 (Runners-Up) | Champions (2018, 2021) |
| Botswana | 10th | 2024 (Group Stage) | Third place (2002) |
| Comoros | 3rd | 2024 (Group stage) | Group stage (2019) |
| Eswatini | 9th | 2024 (Group Stage) | Runners-up (2002) |
| Lesotho | 9th | 2024 (Group stage) | Fourth place (2002) |
| Madagascar | 4th | 2017 (Group stage) | Group stage (2001, 2016, 2017) |
| Malawi | 12th | 2024 (Group Stage) | Champions (2001) |
| Mauritius | 7th | 2024 (Group Stage) | Runners-up (2017) |
| Mozambique | 7th | 2024 (Group stage) | Runners-up (1994, 2019) |
| South Africa | 12th | 2024 (Semi-finalist) | Champions (1994, 2002, 2020) |
| Zambia | 11th | 2024 (Champions) | Champions (2017, 2019, 2022, 2024) |
| Zimbabwe | 7th | 2024 (Semi-finalist) | Champions (2007) |
Did not enter
- Namibia
- Seychelles
The draw was held on 5 August 2025 at 11:30 CAT (UTC+2) at Johannesburg. The 12 teams were drawn into three groups of four teams, with hosts Zimbabwe seeded in Group A (position A1), the defending champions Zambia seeded in Group B (position B1) and Angola seeded in Group C (position C1). The remaining 9 teams were allocated to two pots based on the results of the previous tournament edition and were drawn to the remaining positions.
| Seeds | Pot 1 | Pot 2 |
|---|---|---|
| .mw-parser-output .plainlist ol,.mw-parser-output .plainlist ul{line-height:inherit;list-style:none;margin:0;padding:0}.mw-parser-output .plainlist ol li,.mw-parser-output .plainlist ul li{margin-bottom:0} Zimbabwe (hosts) Zambia (title holder) Angola | Botswana Mozambique South Africa | Comoros Eswatini Lesotho Madagascar Mauritius Malawi |
Each team was required to register a squad of 20 players for the tournament, with players born on or after 1 January 2009 eligible to participate.
| Harare | |
|---|---|
| Ngoni Stadium | Hearts Stadium |
| Capacity: 7,000 | Capacity: 5,000 |
The following officials were appointed to officiate the tournament:
Referees
Assistant Referees
Video Assistant Referees
Assistant Video Assistant Referees
Notes
COSAFA announced the tournament schedule on 19 August 2025.
The top team of each group, along with the best second-placed team, advanced to the semi-finals.
| Tie-breaking criteria for group play |
|---|
| Should two teams finish on the same number of points in the pool phase, they were separated by: |
| The result of their head-to-head meetings in the first instance; |
| Goal difference in all group matches; |
| Goals scored in all group matches; |
| Disciplinary points Yellow card: −1 point;Indirect red card (second yellow card): −3 points;Direct red card: −3 points; |
| Drawing of lots. |
| Should more than two teams finish level on points, the following criteria will be used: |
The greatest number of points obtained in the matches between the teams concerned; The goal difference in the matches between the teams concerned; The greatest number of goals scored in the matches between the teams concerned; If after applying criteria (1) to (3), two teams are still equal, the criteria will be reapplied to matches played between the two teams in question to determine the final ranking of the two teams. If this procedure does not allow for classification, the criteria listed below was applied in the indicated order:
Goal difference in all group matches; The highest number of goals scored in all group matches; Fair Play points system. |
The best second-placed team qualified for the semi-finals.
| Column 1 | Column 2 | Column 3 | Column 4 | Column 5 | Column 6 | Column 7 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Semi-finals | Final | |||||
| 18 September – Harare | ||||||
| South Africa | 7 | |||||
| 20 September – Harare | ||||||
| Comoros | 0 | |||||
| South Africa | 2 | |||||
| 18 September – Harare | ||||||
| Angola | 1 | |||||
| Mozambique | 0 | |||||
| Angola | 1 | |||||
| Third place | ||||||
| 20 September – Harare | ||||||
| Comoros | 0 | |||||
| Mozambique | 3 |
Winners qualified for 2026 U-17 Africa Cup of Nations.
Winners qualified for 2026 U-17 Africa Cup of Nations.
There were 79 goals scored in 22 matches, for an average of 3.59 goals per match.
8 goals
5 goals
4 goals
3 goals
2 goals
1 goal
1 own goal
The COSAFA Technical Study Group announced the group stage Best XI as follows:
| Goalkeepers | Defenders | Midfielders | Forwards |
|---|---|---|---|
| Vilanculos | Costa Vera Amahada | Silva De Figueiredo Nhabanga Molepo | Mchangama Antonio Mhlongo |
Coach: Mario Catala
The COSAFA U-17 Championship technical study group selected the following as the best of the tournament.
| Award | Player |
|---|---|
| Best Player | Omphemetse Sekgoto |
| Top Goal scorer | Pedro Antonio |
| Best Goalkeeper | Gelson Joaquim Dala |
| Fairplay team | Mozambique |
The following three teams from COSAFA qualified for the 2026 U-17 Africa Cup of Nations.
| Team | Qualified on | Previous appearances in U-17 Africa Cup of Nations1 |
|---|---|---|
| Angola | 18 September 2025 | 5 (1997, 1999, 2017, 2019, 2025) |
| South Africa | 18 September 2025 | 5 (2005, 2007, 2015, 2023, 2025) |
| Mozambique | 20 September 2025 | 2 (1995, 2001) |
-
2025 COSAFA U-20 Cup
-
2025 COSAFA U-17 Girls' Championship
-
Championship page at Global Sport Archive
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