2028 Olympics: Chawinga sisters launch Malawi, bench adds to the rout
Malawi thrashed Zimbabwe 7–0 in Harare on Tuesday, with a hat-trick from Temwa Chawinga. The Scorchers go through to the third round of Olympic qualifying, where they will meet Kenya, who knocked them out in 2019.
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On the hour mark, Temwa and Tabitha Chawinga can leave the pitch: Malawi are already 4–0 up. Coach Lovemore Fazili replaces his two forwards, but the goals do not stop with them. Three more follow. In Harare on Tuesday 13 October, the Scorchers knock out Zimbabwe 9–0 on aggregate and press on towards the Los Angeles 2028 Games.
Two sisters lead the way
Malawi arrived with a two-goal lead, earned on Friday in Lilongwe. Simply protecting it would have been enough. Temwa Chawinga gave them something far bigger: her first-half double makes it 2–0 in the second leg. After the break Tabitha scores in turn, then Temwa completes her hat-trick. The first four goals all bear the sisters' signature, as did both goals in the first leg.
Fazili can then take them off. Chisomo Banda and Sarah Mulimbika, who came on in their place, each score late on. Asimenye Simwaka also finds the net. The bench does not change the outcome of a tie already all but settled, but it gives the coach other goalscorers beyond his usual tandem.
Kenya, opponents who have knocked them out before
Finalists at the 2026 Women's Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco and qualified for the 2027 Women's World Cup, the Scorchers are enjoying a year that has changed their standing on the continent. The Olympic place, however, is still to be won: three rounds remain, for just two African places at Los Angeles.
Next up are Kenya, who eliminated Seychelles. This third round is scheduled from 23 February to 6 March 2027. The tie brings back a bad memory for Malawi: in 2019, the Kenyans knocked them out of Olympic qualifying 5–3 on aggregate. The Malawians had won the first leg 3–2 before losing the second 3–0. It is the Kenyans, then, who must be removed to keep the run going.
Sources
- Maravi Express — Duncan Mlanjira, match report, 13 October 2026
- Olympique et Lyonnais — Gwendal Chabas, 13 October 2026
- FAM — second-leg preview and the team's progress, 12 October 2026
- FAM — Women's Africa Cup of Nations final and World Cup qualification, 11 October 2026
- CAF — second-round schedule and results
- CAF — Olympic format and calendar, 29 April 2026
- FAM — 2019 Olympic precedent, 8 October 2026
- Malawi24 — Mwayi Mkandawire, 2019 elimination
Archive photograph: ChaloNiZambia, Zambia–Malawi friendly, 25 February 2025. Original file under CC BY-SA 4.0. Resized and SNA watermark added; adapted image distributed under the same licence.
