The Football Association of Malawi (FAM) says it will review head coach Lovemore Fazili’s contract before the Malawi Women’s National Football Team returns to action in October, as the association weighs whether to hand him a new deal.
Fazili’s current contract, signed in November 2024, expires this October — just before the team’s next fixtures. Under the terms of that deal, he was tasked with two primary targets: qualifying for the 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) and qualifying for the 2027 Women’s World Cup. He has delivered on both.
FAM President Fleetwood Haiya confirmed that a formal review process would begin before any decision is made on a contract extension.
“We know that his contract expires in October this year. As FAM, we will be reviewing it. There are steps that are followed when there is need for contract extension, and we will be discussing with him on this,” Haiya said.
The review comes only months after Fazili faced heavy public criticism when the team endured a difficult run of results in friendly matches ahead of the WAFCON tournament. At the time, calls for his removal grew louder among sections of Malawian football followers.
Haiya said the association never lost faith in the coach, and that his results since have silenced the doubters.
“I’m happy that Malawians have known that Fazili is a good coach. Few months ago, there were a lot of criticisms, and we have been insisting that he is a good coach. He has now taken us to the final of the WAFCON,” Haiya said.
Sports analyst Henry Gome has added his voice to calls for Fazili to be retained, citing the coach’s track record since taking charge of the team.
“For continuity, Lovemore Fazili deserves to remain as the coach of the team. He won us the COSAFA Cup in 2023, he has helped us qualify for the WAFCON where we reached the final, and he has even helped us qualify for the World Cup. I think FAM should extend his contract,” Gome said.
Malawi Women’s National Football Team will face Zimbabwe in the Olympic games qualifiers in October.
Fazili was appointed head coach of the Malawi Women’s National Football Team in 2022, stepping in after Thom Mkorongo turned down the role following McNebert Kadzuwa’s exit.
His reign began with a run to the semifinals of the 2022 COSAFA Cup, before he went one better the following year, guiding the team to the COSAFA Cup title in 2023.
That success laid the foundation for his standout achievement: leading Malawi to the 2026 WAFCON, where the team defied expectations to reach the final, eventually falling to Cameroon. The same qualifying campaign also secured Malawi’s place at the 2027 Women’s World Cup, set to be hosted in Brazil.
