Zambia Coach Criticizes CAF Rule After WAFCON Exit

Nora Häuptle, the head coach of Zambia’s women national team, expressed her frustration with the tie-break rule implemented by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) during the ongoing Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON). Despite Zambia's 2-1 victory over Malawi on Wednesday, the Copper Queens were eliminated from the tournament.

All three teams (Zambia, Nigeria, and Malawi) finished with six points. However, CAF's tie-break regulations, which are based on goals scored in matches among the tied teams, resulted in Zambia's exit.

Nigeria and Malawi advanced after scoring four and three goals respectively in their head-to-head matches, while Zambia managed only two. Häuptle stated, “We scored the most goals in this group, and we conceded the least goals,” indicating her disbelief at the outcome and questioning the fairness of the regulations that led to their elimination.