Just after opposition MP Vitumbiko Mumba branded the presence of politicians in Morocco a "bad omen" for the Scorchers, a football administrator and leading Malawian academic has waded into the debate -- dismissing any talk of curses, jinxes or bad luck behind the team's final defeat.
Mumba had sparked controversy after accusing political figures of flocking to Rabat to "steal the limelight" from a success they had no part in creating, warning that their presence felt like an ill omen ahead of the Scorchers' showdown with Cameroon.
But law academic Sunduzwayo Madise has now offered a very different take -- rejecting outright the idea that supernatural forces, rather than football, decided the outcome of Sunday's final.
"There's no such thing as minyama or bad luck. It's just the brain looking for something to blame when things go wrong. The better team won. Simple," Madise wrote in a pointed social media post.
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Rather than dwelling on omens or superstition, Madise instead chose to celebrate the scale of what the Scorchers had achieved against the odds.
"And let's be honest: haven't our gals punched way above their weight?" he added, accompanying the message with a Malawi flag and fire emoji.
The comments land amid a wider national conversation over the Scorchers' agonising 3-0 defeat to Cameroon in Rabat -- a result that left fans across the country heartbroken, even as the team's historic run to the final, and qualification for next year's World Cup in Brazil, continues to be celebrated as one of Malawian sport's finest achievements.
Whether it was politics, omens, or simply a superior Cameroon side on the night, one thing uniting Malawians in the aftermath is clear: pride in a Scorchers side that defied every expectation to make history.
