CentreCircle.online has learnt that the South African U17 Women’s National team will not take part in the 2025 COSAFA U17 Women’s Championship as they were unable to miss more school days.
The tournament is set to take place between 10-17 May in Namibia with nine nations vying to unseat reigning champions Zambia.
Last year the competition was held in Johannesburg and the hosts were knocked out in the semi-finals by the eventual winners.
In a statement seen by this publication, the South African Football Association (SAFA) decided to forgo the 2025 tournament so the young ones can focus on their education.
“As an association, we have the responsibility of balancing education with football, especially for the younger players. The U17 girls, some of whom are as young as 15 years old, have missed a lot of school since the beginning of the year while attending various preparation camps and participating in the FIFA U17 World Cup qualifiers,” said the statement from SAFA.
Bantwana were recently involved in a training camp for the 2025 FIFA U17 Women’s World Cup qualifiers where they took on their counterparts from Nigeria – and that took them out of school between 7-16 March. Some were also selected for the Sasol-sponsored Banyana Banyana in February, and missed classes from 17-26 February when they played two friendly games against Lesotho.
“We are now preparing for the CAF African Schools Football Championship, which will be staged in Ghana, and this means more school hours will be missed in April. So, we decided not to participate in the COSAFA U17 Championship in May to afford the players an opportunity to catch up with schooling before the mid-year break. Their success in school is more important than just playing football,” continued the statement.
Meanwhile, in a draw conducted on Thursday (10 April 2025) in Johannesburg, tournament hosts Namibia were pitted against Malawi and Comoros in Group A for the 2025 edition of the COSAFA U17 Women’s Championship.
Defending champions Zambia are in Group B and will face Mozambique and Mauritius, while 2024 runners up Lesotho are in Group C alongside Botswana and Zimbabwe.
This will be the first time Namibia hosts the tournament.
By Matlhomola Morake
