The Malawi Senior Men’s National Football Team is expected to go into camp next week to start preparations for the World Cup Qualifiers against Liberia and Tunisia subject to funding.
The Football Association of Malawi (FAM) has appointed Patrick “General” Mabedi as the head coach for the team for the next two years after being impressed by the progress of the team during his three-month stay as the Caretaker coach.
The Association announced the development on Sunday through the statement saying they have full confidence in Mabedi that he can steer the projects.
The Executive Committee of the Association led by the President, Walter Nyamilandu held a meeting on Saturday where they overlooked over 50 applications from both Local and International coaches who were vying for the post.
“The Emergency Committee has given its approval to the recommendation put
forth by the FAM Technical Committee to appoint Mr. Patrick Mabedi as the
Malawi Senior Men’s National team Coach on a two-year contract,” reads the statement in part.
The Association said the specific
targets and a roadmap have been established to support continuous high performance standards.
“The overarching vision is for the Flames to qualify for
the 2025 AFCON tournament in Morocco. The Committee has full confidence in Mr. Mabedi’s abilities to steer this ambitious project toward success,” adds the statement.
The key targets that have been injected into Mabedi’s contract include qualification for the 2025 AFCON, finishing in the top 2 of the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers and achieving at least a semi-final placement in the COSAFA tournament, which is viewed as a developmental opportunity for the senior national
team.
Mr. Mabedi’s immediate responsibility is to prepare the team for the 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers. The team is scheduled to play two matches next month, one against Liberia in Monrovia and the other against Tunisia in Lilongwe. Mr. Mabedi’s appointment is contingent upon reaching an agreement on the specified targets and personal terms with FAM.
During the meeting , the Committee resolved to escalate the budgetary requirements for
the two matches to the government for supplementary budget allocation after it was informed that there are no funds to support the Flames’ assignments.
Mabedi was Flames caretaker coach for a period of three months after the association decided to release Mario Marinica after the expiry of his contract due to poor performance of the team.
He led the Flames to the semifinals of the Cosafa Cup for the first time in 20 years after winning all three matches in the group stage with youthful squad.
In the Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) qualifiers, the Flames drew 0-0 against Ethiopia at Zimpeto National Stadium in Maputo, Mozambique before a 2-2 stalemate against Guinea at Bingu National Stadium in Lilongwe.
