Plans were to use the annual tournament that was last held in 2009 in Bulawayo, Zimbabwe; to tie up preparations for the Botswana national team.
Botswana Football Association (BFA) chief executive officer, Duncan Kgame has admitted there is little hope that the tournament will be held this year. "I wrote to COSAFA on Monday and they are yet to respond, but the way things stand we do not have any reason to prepare. We will have to come up with a plan B, to prepare the Zebras for the September matches," Kgame told Mmegi Sport. Early this year, COSAFA said talks with a prospective sponsor were at an advanced stage and asked the Football Association of Malawi to work on a R5 million or (P4.5 million) budget that would cover the costs such as accommodation, food and local transport. The tournament was to be staged in May this year in Blantyre, Malawi, but there has not been an official word from COSAFA. According to a Malawi publication, The Nation, no preparations have been done for the tournament. Kgame bemoaned the absence of the tournament in the past three years, emphasising that it could be the reason southern African countries struggled at the AFCON at the beginning of the year. All teams from the region failed to make it past the first round, save for eventual winners Zambia.
