Hauptle sets Zambia target to secure WAFCON slot against Namibia

Ahead of their Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) qualifying fixture against Namibia, Zambia coach Nora Hauptle has set the target of qualifying the women’s national team to the 2026 WAFCON.

The Copper Queens will face Namibia in a two-legged affair with the first meeting set for October 22 and the second tie four days later.

“Panono, panono we say. First, let us focus on this qualifier. We always do our first job well and when it is done [we qualify], then we also look forward,” Hauptle said as quoted by Bola News.

Barbra Banda to miss Namibia clash

Zambia will have to navigate the fixture minus captain Barbra Banda owing to an injury, and speaking about her absence, she said: “Of course you can never substitute Barbara Banda. You don’t find a substitution one-on-one, but for me it is like losers complain and winners, they try to find a solution. We have 41 players here, we have called up a lot of strikers, wingers. So it is now time to step in for the next [player].”

The Swiss tactician added: “Our international players from the US and China will probably arrive on Monday and Tuesday. That will be a lot of time, but we will use this one to put sessions before. Namibia, I know very well, because with Ghana, I kicked them out in the last qualifiers.

“So for me it is nothing new, we know about their qualities. They have two or three good players, we are aware of it, but basically we focus on us.”

The Namibia fixture will determine Zambia’s qualification for the 2026 WAFCON, which will also be used as a qualifier for the World Cup.