Zambia will be hoping to extend their record number of COSAFA titles at Under-20 level to 13 when they compete in Mozambique this year as defending champions, having claimed the title two years ago in Eswatini.
They have been remarkably consistent at this level - in the nine tournaments they have played since 2010, they have won five to go with two fourth-place finishes and two exits in the pool stages.
Their road to the title in 2022 included group stage wins over Mauritius (3-0), Eswatini (2-0) and Botswana (1-0), before they edged Angola on penalties in the semifinals and beat then holders Mozambique 1-0 in the decider.
They will be hoping for a repeat this year in the TotalEnergies CAF U20 Africa Cup of Nations | COSAFA Qualifier from September 26-October 5, where they have been drawn alongside Angola and Namibia and in Group B.
Only the top team in each pool and the best-placed runner-up across the three pools advance to semifinals.
Prior to 2022, their last victory came in 2019 under coach Oswald Mutapa. It was a commanding performance from the side as they claimed a full haul of nine points in the pool stages, before seeing off Angola 3-0 in the semifinals.
That was followed by victory against old foe South Africa by the same comprehensive margin in the decider.
Zambia were also rampant in 2016 as they stormed through that competition and inflicted a 2-1 defeat on their hosts South Africa in the decider.
They went on to claim the 2017 Africa Under-20 Championships title on home soil, and also excelled at the FIFA Under-20 World Cup in South Korea.
But the side disappointed in the COSAFA Men's Under-20 Championship that year, bowing out in the first round after a defeat to East African guest nation Uganda was followed by a draw with Malawi and a win over Eswatini.
They did make the semifinals in 2018 but lost 2-1 to Zimbabwe and were then beaten 2-1 by Angola in the bronze-medal match.
They reached the semifinals again in 2020, a competition played in South Africa, winning all three pool matches against Namibia (1-0), Comoros (2-0) and Malawi (2-0).
They came unstuck in the semifinals though when they were held 0-0 by Mozambique, before losing 5-4 on penalties. They were beaten 2-1 by Angola in the bronze-medal match.
Zambia have also been fairly regular visitors to the Africa Under-20 Championship and have appeared at the continental tournament on 10 previous occasions. Apart from their gold medal in 2017, they also finished fourth in 1991, 1999 and 2007.
ZAMBIA FINISHES IN LAST 25 YEARS
1999 - Winners
2000 - Quarterfinals
2001 - Third
2002 - Fourth
2003 - Winners
2004 - Runners-up
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2005 - Third
2006 - Runners-up
2007 - Group stages
2008 - Group stages
2009 - Runners-up
2010 - Winners
2011 - Winners
2013 - Group stages
2016 - Winners
2017 - Group stages
2018 - Fourth
2019 - Winners
2020 - Fourth
2022 - Winners
