Copper Princesses host Ethiopia in World Cup qualifier

NDOLA — Zambia's Under-17 Women's National Team, known as the Copper Princesses, is a youth side that represents the country in age-restricted international football.

The team now stands one qualifying tie from a third consecutive FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup, hosting Ethiopia on Saturday at Levy Mwanawasa Stadium in Ndola in the first leg of the final round of 2026 qualifiers, with kick-off scheduled for 15h00. A win, or a favourable result carried into the second leg, would move Zambia a step closer to matching a run of youth-football progress that has become one of the country's more consistent international footballing stories in recent years.

Background

CAF qualifying for the FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup typically runs through a series of two-legged knockout ties, with the aggregate score across both matches deciding which teams advance to the continental play-off stage and, ultimately, to the global finals. That format means Saturday's Ndola fixture is only half the contest: the return leg in Ethiopia will decide the tie on aggregate, so neither side can afford to think of the first leg in isolation from the second.

Zambian women's football has built real momentum at both senior and youth level over the past decade. The senior Copper Queens have grown into a rising continental force, reaching the Women's Africa Cup of Nations and the Olympic Games, and Zambia has previously qualified age-grade sides for FIFA Under-17 and Under-20 Women's World Cups. The Copper Princesses' bid for a third straight U-17 World Cup appearance sits inside that broader pattern: a footballing programme that has invested in the women's game long enough to start producing consistent qualification results rather than one-off breakthroughs.

The fixture

Levy Mwanawasa Stadium, the Ndola venue named after Zambia's third president, is one of the country's principal football grounds and a regular host for national-team fixtures on the Copperbelt. Staging the first leg away from Lusaka reflects a broader pattern in Zambian football administration of spreading marquee matches across the country's football-heavy provinces, giving Copperbelt supporters direct access to a World Cup qualifying tie rather than requiring a trip to the capital.

Ethiopia's Under-17 Women's National Team has travelled to Ndola for the fixture, a logistical commitment that underlines how seriously the East African federation is treating the tie. Two-legged CAF qualifiers place a premium on away form: a team that limits the damage or scores on the road effectively controls the tie ahead of the second leg, so both Zambia and Ethiopia will be alert to that dynamic in Ndola on Saturday.

The Football Association of Zambia has framed the campaign around continuity: the aim, according to the association's public messaging around the U-17 Women's programme, is for the Copper Princesses to secure a third consecutive World Cup appearance rather than treat qualification as a one-off target. That framing matters because it signals structural investment in the age-grade women's programme rather than reliance on a single talented generation.

The Copper Princesses are targeting a third consecutive World Cup appearance, building on the structures that have carried Zambian women's youth football onto the global stage in recent cycles.

— Football Association of Zambia, on the Copper Princesses' 2026 qualifying campaign

Why this qualifier matters

A third consecutive FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup appearance would be a meaningful marker for a footballing nation that has spent years working to convert individual talent into sustained international qualification. Age-grade success also functions as a pipeline: players who gain World Cup experience at Under-17 level frequently graduate into Under-20 squads and, eventually, into senior international football, which is part of why the senior Copper Queens' recent continental rise has coincided with steady investment lower down the pathway.

This comes as the senior Copper Queens continue preparations for the 2026 Women's Africa Cup of Nations, with the squad having entered a camp in Algeria ahead of the tournament, as Kwacha News has reported. The senior and junior programmes are separate teams competing in separate competitions, but both campaigns sit inside the same national push to build Zambia into a durable presence in African women's football rather than an occasional qualifier.

The broader continental picture also matters for context. African representation at senior FIFA World Cup level has been a live talking point across the men's and women's games alike; Kwacha News has covered how African teams performed at the 2026 World Cup's round of 32. Youth-level qualification campaigns such as the Copper Princesses' tie against Ethiopia are part of the long-run effort to keep African teams — and specifically Zambian teams — competitive at the top of global age-grade football, feeding into that senior representation over time.

What to watch

The first thing to watch is Saturday's scoreline and how it shapes the tie heading into the second leg in Ethiopia. In a two-legged format, an early goal or a clean sheet at home carries outsized value, since it sets the aggregate target the away side must overturn. The second is squad management: coaching staff on both sides will be balancing the demand to win the first leg against the need to keep players fit and available for the return fixture.

The third is the wider qualifying picture across CAF's final round, where other final-round ties will also be producing first-leg results this weekend, shaping the emerging picture of which African youth teams are best placed to reach the global finals. The fourth is the date and venue of the return leg in Ethiopia, which will determine the aggregate winner and, with it, whether the Copper Princesses' bid for a third straight World Cup appearance stays alive.

For now, the story is the one directly in front of both federations: a home tie in Ndola, a travelling Ethiopian side, and a place at the 2026 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup at stake. This fixture is part of Kwacha News's continuing sport coverage of Zambian football across the men's, women's and youth national teams.

Frequently Asked Questions

These are the questions readers are asking about the Copper Princesses' qualifier against Ethiopia. Short answers follow, drawn from the fixture details and the format of CAF's U-17 Women's World Cup qualifying.

What is the Copper Princesses' fixture against Ethiopia?

In short, it is the first leg of the final round of 2026 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup qualifiers between Zambia's Under-17 Women's National Team and Ethiopia's Under-17 Women's National Team. The answer, simply put, is that Zambia hosts the match at Levy Mwanawasa Stadium in Ndola on Saturday, with kick-off at 15h00. The key is that this is only the first of two legs, with the aggregate score deciding which team advances.

How does CAF's U-17 Women's World Cup qualifying work?

CAF qualifying for the FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup runs through two-legged knockout ties. Analysis of the format shows that teams play a home leg and an away leg, with the aggregate score across both matches determining the winner. Data from prior qualifying cycles reveals that away goals and disciplined defending in the first leg are often decisive by the time the second leg is played.

Why is this qualifier significant for Zambian football?

According to the Football Association of Zambia's public framing of the campaign, the Copper Princesses are targeting a third consecutive FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup appearance. The answer is that consistent qualification, rather than a single breakthrough campaign, shows a football federation building durable structures in the women's youth game — the same investment pattern that has supported the senior Copper Queens' rise as a continental force.

What are the stakes in the tie for both teams?

For Zambia, the stakes are a third consecutive World Cup appearance and continued momentum for the age-grade women's programme. For Ethiopia, victory or a strong away-leg platform would open a path to a first appearance in some years and validate the federation's decision to travel the squad to Ndola. In other words, both sides have a clear incentive to control the tie from the first whistle rather than treat the away leg as a formality.

Which stadium is hosting the first leg, and why does it matter?

Levy Mwanawasa Stadium in Ndola is hosting the first leg. The venue is one of Zambia's principal football grounds and a regular home for national-team fixtures on the Copperbelt. The key is that staging the tie in Ndola, rather than Lusaka, brings a World Cup qualifier directly to Copperbelt supporters and reflects how Zambian football administration spreads major fixtures across the country's football provinces.

Sources

This report is based on fixture and team details published for Zambia's 2026 FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup qualifying campaign, including the confirmed date, venue, kick-off time and competing teams. Competition background: FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup. Related Kwacha News coverage: the senior Copper Queens' Algeria training camp ahead of WAFCON 2026, and how African teams fared at the 2026 World Cup's round of 32. Further updates on the Copper Princesses' campaign, including the second-leg date in Ethiopia, will follow as they are confirmed.