Eness Gumbo
* Four each for Olympic Games Los Angeles 2028 African qualifier in Côte d’Ivoire and in CAF Confederation Cup in Ethiopia
* One is Sports Council’s Sports, Recreation & Development Officer, Eness Gumbo, who also served as a video assistant referee (VAR) at the WAfCON Morocco 2026
By Duncan Mlanjira
Two teams of four Malawian referees have been appointed by FIFA and CAF to officiate the CAF Confederation Cup and the FIFA Women’s Olympic Games Los Angeles 2028 qualifier.
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They include Malawi National Council of Sports’ Sports, Recreation & Development Officer, Eness Gumbo, who serve as the fourth official for the second-leg of the FIFA Women’s Olympic Games Los Angeles 2028 2nd round qualifier between Côte d’Ivoire and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DR Congo) in Abidjan on October 13.
The centre referee will be Rose Zimba to be assisted by Happiness Mbandambanda and Mphatso Matete.
The appointment adds to Gumbo’s growing international experience as she served at the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAfCON) Morocco 2026 as a video assistant referee (VAR).
The other quartet comprises David Chinoko, Lameck Mbuluma Phiri, Tembo Pondamali and Easter Bright Kalikokha Zimba to officiate the CAF Confederation Cup encounter between Welwalo Adigrat University SC of Ethiopia and Al Ahli Tripoli of Libya at Dire Dawa Stadium in Ethiopia also on October 16.
Chinoko will be the centre referee, with Mbuluma Phiri and Pondamali serving as first and second assistant referees respectively, while Zimba will be the fourth official.
Meanwhile, FAM Media reports that Duncan Lengani has been appointed by CAF as Referee Assessor for the CAF Champions League match between Orlando Pirates of South Africa and African Stars of Namibia at Orlando Stadium in Johannesburg on October 23.
For beach soccer, Mathews Ngwira and Solomoni Siliwonde have been appointed for the match between Burundi and Uganda qualifier scheduled for tomorrow, October 10.
FAM Communications Officer Collins Nsunza is quoted saying the growing number of international appointments demonstrates the progress being made in developing match officials in the country.
“As you can see, these appointments are a true reflection of the Transformation Agenda set by the Football Association of Malawi to ensure that our referees gain international exposure.
“We are pleased to see our match officials being trusted with important assignments at FIFA and CAF level. This exposure is critical to their development and also shows that the investment we are making in refereeing is bearing fruit,” said Nsunza.
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