Zambia defeated Lesotho 1-0 in the 2023 Cosafa Cup final on Sunday night at the King Zwelithini Stadium to win the tournament for a record seventh time.

Thanks to a second-half header from forward Moyela Libamba, Chipolopolo successfully defended the Cosafa Cup they won last year and moved ahead of longtime rivals Zimbabwe (six championships) on the list of tournament winners overall.

Despite putting on a good performance and appearing to be the superior side for the first two-thirds of the game, Likuena was unable to secure their maiden Cosafa Cup victory.

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Both teams had early opportunities, but neither managed to obtain a noteworthy shot on goal until the 16th minute when Motebang Sera of Lesotho connected with a left-wing cross and headed toward the goal, but Francis Mwansa of Zambia were able to easily stop it.

The passing of Lesotho was generally more fluid and rhythmic, but it was difficult to get beyond Zambia’s resistance.

Rethabile Rasethuntsa, a left-back, had a chance to score after a deft free-kick routine just beyond the half-hour mark, but his shot missed the near post.

Despite having trouble involving their strikers, Chipolopolo came close to scoring late in the first half when Moyela Libamba powered a header from a long throw-in on target, but a defender deflected the ball away.

Early in the second half, Lesotho’s Sera put the ball in the back of the net, but the assistant referee wrongly called him offside. After that, Lesotho continued to produce promising opportunities without really stressing their opponents’ defensive fortitude.

As the second half went on, Zambia steadily gained strength and took the lead in the 78th minute through Limbaba, who headed in a corner kick from substitute Joshua Mutale.