How the Chawinga Sisters Carried Malawi to Its First-Ever African Final

Malawi, a nation making its debut at the Women's Africa Cup of Nations, reached the tournament final this week — and the two players who dragged them there share a surname, a childhood, and a talent that has taken them across three continents.

Tabitha and Temwa Chawinga combined for all three goals in a 3-1 semi-final win over Nigeria, one of the traditional powers of African women's football. Temwa scored the first and third. Tabitha, the team's captain, slotted the second with a composed finish in the 80th minute. The result sent Malawi into Sunday's final against Cameroon in Rabat. (CAF, FAM)

Temwa, the vice-captain, had already been the standout of the tournament. She scored in three of Malawi's four matches before the semi-final, including the winner in a group-stage victory over Egypt that kept the Scorchers — as the Malawi women's team are known — perfect through their opening fixtures. (CAF, FAM)

What makes the run remarkable is how little precedent there was. This is Malawi's first appearance at WAFCON. Nobody in the country had ever watched their women's team on this stage. Now they are one match from a continental title.

Both sisters built their game far from home. Tabitha was the pathfinder. In 2014, an American NGO worker who had played for Malawian side DD Sunshine relocated to Sweden and joined Krokom Dvarsatts, a third-tier club. DD Sunshine's owner, David Dube, suggested they try out Chawinga. When the Swedish club hesitated, Dube offered to pay her visa and flight costs himself. (BBC Sport)

She had to wait until after her 18th birthday to make her debut. Then she scored 39 goals in 14 games. (BBC Sport)

That was the start of a career that has touched nearly every corner of the elite women's game. Tabitha became the first Malawian woman to play professional football in Europe. She was the top scorer in the Swedish top flight in 2017. Six years in China brought three league titles, three golden boots and two player of the season awards. A loan spell at Inter Milan in 2022-23 ended with the Serie A golden boot. Then came Paris St-Germain, where she became the first woman from Malawi to play and score in the Uefa Champions League — European club football's premier competition. She now plays for Lyon, the most decorated club in the history of that competition, and started in last season's Champions League final defeat by Barcelona. (BBC Sport)

After winning the Serie A golden boot, Tabitha said her goal was "to achieve for African people" and to show girls on the continent that women can play football like men. (BBC Sport)

Temwa's trajectory has been no less startling. She plays her club football for Kansas City Current in the American NWSL — the National Women's Soccer League, widely regarded as one of the strongest domestic leagues in the world. She won the NWSL Golden Boot in 2024 with 20 goals, then retained it in 2025 with 15. She is also the fastest player in NWSL history to reach 25 career regular-season goals. (Kansas City Current, Kansas City Current)

Temwa had not played for Malawi since February of the year before her WAFCON return. Head coach Lovemore Fazili named her in the provisional squad in late June, and she joined the group later in the build-up. (FAM, FAM)

For a sense of scale: Nigeria, the team the Chawingas dismantled in the semi-final, have won the African women's championship 11 times. Malawi had never been to the tournament before this summer. Two sisters from a country with no pedigree on this stage walked into the arena and outplayed the giants.

Sunday's final in Rabat is the last match of the tournament. Win or lose, the story has already been written. Two players, from the same family, decided that the distance between a small southern African nation and the top of the women's game was something they could close. They were right.