Botswana hosts the event billed for December for the second successive year. As hosts, Botswana were seeded in Group A while defending champions, Zambia were seeded in Group C at a draw conducted in Gaborone yesterday. On paper, the Young Zebras look favourites, having avoided giants like Zambia, South Africa and Zimbabwe. In Group B, the Seychelles will lock horns with Malawi and Lesotho in the only group that consists of three countries. There is however concern over Malawi's availability, with travel bans imposed on all national teams following political unrest in the country. There is hope however for the organising committee that the situation will be solved before the start of the tournament.
In Group C, Zambia will battle it out with South Africa, Mauritius and Tanzania. Both Zambia and South Africa are seen as favourites to win the tournament. Tanzania are the newcomers this year after COSAFA extended an invitation to them. In Group D, Angola, Madagascar, Namibia and Zimbabwe will battle it out. While Zimbabwe will always be seen as one of the giants in the region, Namibia were a surprise package last year. They defeated South Africa on their way to reaching the final for the first time.
