Babitseng's gargantuan COSAFA task

Mqondisi Dube | Tuesday May 19, 2026 08:53

Over the weekend, COSAFA's ecdysis moment came, and with it, a new leader in the form of Tariq Babitseng was handed the key to the management of the region's football. Botswana is taking keen interest on the development, as Babitseng becomes only the second Motswana to head the regional organisation.

The moment deserves a round of applause as Botswana takes a significant share in regional football leadership. Babitseng's ascendancy has been rapid considering he is relatively a greenhorn following his election to the Botswana Football Association (BFA) top post in 2024.

Less than two years later, he now leads a 14-member regional association, one of CAF's six regional zones.

The weight that rests on Babitseng's shoulders is huge. If BFA presented a big challenge, then at COSAFA, the task is gargantuan, unless if the role of COSAFA president is more ceremonial than it appears.

Babitseng knows the rising expectations back home since he assumed the BFA presidency on September 14, 2024, just months before the country witnessed a watershed moment at the ballot. The jury is still out as Babitseng navigates a tough terrain locally, with reports of a 'coup' gaining ground.

However, the BFA leader will feel that his critics will be forced to eat humble pie after the region endorsed him during elections held in Harare on Sunday. He was unopposed for the position which was held by Angolan, Artur de Almeida e Silva between 2022 and 2026. But Babitseng will know all too well that at times a prophet has no honour at home, and he now faces an intricate balancing act.

While holding the position of COSAFA presidency sounds prestigious, it is the opposite of doing a catwalk. Babitseng should deliver tangible changes to an organisation that is really clamouring for an ecdysis moment; a moment that will reinvigorate and renew the organisation.

COSAFA needs to re-brand, rather than forever be synonymous with only tournaments, in particular the men's COSAFA Cup. The organisation has seemingly reached a certain ceiling and a new president- together with his committee- should chart a new course and bring fresh thinking.

COSAFA has struggled to take competitions out of South Africa, with reports that other member countries fail to source sufficient sponsorship to host the tournaments.

That should change and people should start seeing the old version of the COSAFA Cup which was hosted across all member countries, generating excitement in the process. Under the current arrangement, crowds have been sparse, failing to raise the expected excitement.

COSAFA has done its all particularly in promoting football development, but then one is left to feel that the next step has not been reached. It is where the Babitseng leadership comes in.

They need to go beyond endless meetings without implementation or visible change on the ground. Real change is judged through results, and the region expects a new trajectory, otherwise it will be an issue of the old wine.