Africa: South Africa Retain Cosafa U20 Title As Mozambique Finish Runners-Up On Home Soil

What the report says

South Africa won the COSAFA Under-20 qualifying title again after defeating hosts Mozambique 2-1 in Sunday’s final, according to CAF’s report distributed by AllAfrica. The result gave South Africa a perfect run through the tournament, with five wins from five matches, and secured one of the two COSAFA places at the next CAF Under-20 Africa Cup of Nations.

Oarabile Booysen put South Africa ahead in the 28th minute with a long-range effort, but Mozambique responded quickly through Martinho Comecar. Steven Mendes then converted a penalty in the 58th minute to restore South Africa’s lead and seal the victory. Mendes finished as the competition’s top scorer with six goals, while South Africa goalkeeper Takalani Mazhamba was named best goalkeeper.

Mozambique’s run to the final was also notable on home soil. The hosts recovered from a group-stage loss to Namibia and advanced after reaching the best runner-up place on fair play points, then beat Namibia 3-0 in the semi-finals. Alírio Cuna was named player of the tournament. In the third-place match, Zambia beat Namibia 3-0 to claim bronze.

The final brought the tournament to a close after 22 matches and 73 goals. South Africa and Mozambique will now prepare for the continental finals in Ghana next year. A wider takeaway from the event is that the COSAFA region will again be represented by two teams at the CAF Under-20 level, underscoring the competition’s role as a qualifying pathway rather than only a regional title race.