‘I am not very sad’ - Malawi coach Fazili proud despite WAFCON final defeat

Malawi head coach Lovemore Fazili has refused to dwell on the disappointment of losing the 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations final, insisting he is proud of how far the Scorchers have come despite their 3-0 defeat to Cameroon.

Malawi's extraordinary debut campaign came to an end at the Moulay El Hassan Stadium in Rabat, where Cameroon produced a ruthless first-half display to claim their first-ever WAFCON title.

The Scorchers had captured the imagination of African football throughout the tournament, defeating established sides including Nigeria, Ghana and Algeria on their way to a historic final.

Cameroon dominated the first half, scoring three goals to secure a decisive lead against Malawi. Marie Ngah opened the scoring in the 20th minute, followed by Naomi Ndjoah Eto's goal ten minutes later, assisted by Myriam Nyadjou.

Ngah scored her second in first-half stoppage time, leaving Malawi with an insurmountable challenge. Though the first half was lopsided, Malawi prevented Cameroon from scoring further in the second half.

For Fazili, that was an indication that his players refused to surrender despite the difficult circumstances.

“Yes, Cameroon scored three in the first half, but they didn't score any in the second,” Fazili said.

Rather than criticising his players, Fazili chose to focus on the bigger picture.

The coach acknowledged that football does not always produce the result a team plans for and believes Malawi's achievement should not be overshadowed by the final defeat.

He added, “In football, you have to expect these things. You plan for a positive outcome, but sometimes it goes the other way.

“Overall, I’m not very sad because this is football. Considering where we've come from, I am happy with our performance. We lost, and that's that.”

For a team appearing at the WAFCON for the first time, reaching the final represents an extraordinary achievement.

“Reaching the final is a significant achievement for us. We won't stop here. We will build on what we've accomplished at WAFCON and continue our preparations,” Fazili added.