2023 ABSA Cup
The 2023 ABSA Cup is be the 16th edition of the annual knock-out competition in Zambian football contested by 6 teams from the Super League and the top 2 teams from the National Division One following the conclusion of match day 17 of the 2022–23 season.[1]
| Country |  Zambia |
|---|---|
| Dates | 11 March – 25 April |
| Teams | 8 |
| Defending champions | NAPSA Stars |
| Matches played | 6 |
| Goals scored | 9 (1.5 per match) |
| Top goal scorer(s) | Cephas Mulombwa (3 goals) (Forest Rangers) |
← 2022 2024 →
All statistics correct as of 13 April 2023. | |
It will be the 4th edition under the "ABSA Cup" name following ABSA's completed acquisition of the African assets and operations of Barclays in 2018.[2][3]
NAPSA Stars are defending champions after beating Red Arrows 1–0 to win the previous edition's title in 2022.[4][5][6]
Draw
At the conclusion of match day 17 of the 2022–23 Zambian football season, the Super League table's top 6 positions consisted of Forest Rangers, Red Arrows, Power Dynamos, Green Buffaloes, Green Eagles and Maestro United and the National Division One table's top 2 positions consisted of Mufulira Wanderers and Trident FC.[7]
The draw was held at a relocated headquarters of Absa Bank Zambia in Lusaka[8] on 1 March 2023.[1][9][10][11][12] Green Buffaloes, Green Eagles, Red Arrows and Power Dynamos were seeded by virtue of their performances in the previous editions of the ABSA Cup with Mufulira Wanderers, Trident FC, Maestro United and Forest Rangers being unseeded.[1][10][11][12]
Bracket
| Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Final | ||||||||
| 11 March 13:00 Woodlands Stadium | ||||||||||
| Green Buffaloes | 0 | |||||||||
| 8 April Arthur Davies Stadium | ||||||||||
| Forest Rangers | 1 | |||||||||
| Forest Rangers | 2 | |||||||||
| 11 March 11:00 Woodlands Stadium | ||||||||||
| Power Dynamos | 1 | |||||||||
| Power Dynamos | 1 | |||||||||
| 20 May National Heroes Stadium | ||||||||||
| Mufulira Wanderers | 0 | |||||||||
| Forest Rangers | ||||||||||
| 12 March 13:00 Woodlands Stadium | ||||||||||
| Maestro United Zambia | ||||||||||
| Green Eagles | 0 | |||||||||
| 9 April Arthur Davies Stadium | ||||||||||
| Trident FC | 1 | |||||||||
| Trident FC | 0 | |||||||||
| 12 March 15:00 Woodlands Stadium | ||||||||||
| Maestro United Zambia | 1 | |||||||||
| Red Arrows | 0 | |||||||||
| Maestro United Zambia | 2 | |||||||||
Matches
Kick-off times listed are in CAT (UTC+02:00).
Quarter-finals
| Green Buffaloes | 0–1 | Forest Rangers |
|---|---|---|
| Report |  64' Cephas Mulombwa |
| Power Dynamos | 1–0 | Mufulira Wanderers |
|---|---|---|
| 39' Jacob Kaunda |
Report |
| Green Eagles | 0–1 | Trident FC |
|---|---|---|
| Report | 84' Peter Musukuma |
| Red Arrows | 0–2 | Maestro United Zambia |
|---|---|---|
| Report |
|
Semi-finals
| Power Dynamos | 1–2 | Forest Rangers |
|---|---|---|
| 6' Fredrick Mulambia |
Report |
|
Final
| Maestro United Zambia | v | Forest Rangers |
|---|---|---|
Prize allocation and logistics
Absa Bank Zambia announced a tournament prize and logistical monetary increment a day before the draw ceremony, i.e. on 28 February 2023 which are as follows:[1][13][8]
| Reason | Amount |
|---|---|
| Qualified teams | K20,000 |
| Travel grant |
|
| Champions | K700,000 |
| Runners-up | K350,000 |
| Top-scorer | K25,000 |
| Golden Glove | |
| Player of the Tournament | K25,000 |
| Coach of the Tournament | K25,000 |
| Man of the Match | K25,000 |
| Source[1] | |
References
- "2023 ABSA Cup draw set for Wednesday". ZamFoot. 28 February 2023. Retrieved 3 March 2023.
The eight teams involved in the 2023 Absa Cup comprise the top six clubs from MTN Super League and the top two FAZ National Division One clubs as of Week 17.
- "Barclays Africa Group Relaunches as Absa Group with a Fresh New Look" (Press release). Absa. 1 March 2018. Archived from the original on 30 September 2020. Retrieved 7 February 2023.
- "Zambia : Barclays Bank Zambia PLC officially becomes Absa Bank Zambia PLC". Lusaka Times. 10 February 2020. Retrieved 7 March 2021.
- "NAPSA Stars stun Red Arrows to win the ABSA Cup". ZamFoot. 30 April 2022. Retrieved 3 February 2023.
- "Napsa deny Arrows double to win ABSA Cup". African Football. 30 April 2022. Retrieved 3 March 2023.
- "Napsa Stars Win 2022 ABSA Cup". Africa Press. 2 May 2022. Retrieved 3 March 2023.
- "2023 Absa Cup Quarter Finalists revealed". ZamFoot. 12 December 2022. Retrieved 7 March 2023.
- "Zambia : Absa Bank increases package for Absa Cup by K400,000". Lusaka Times. 1 March 2023. Retrieved 8 March 2023.
...during the unveiling of the 2023 edition at the new Absa headquarters near the Lusaka showgrounds.
- "ABSA Cup: 2023 ABSA Cup launched… Sponsorship upped by 10 percent". ZamFoot. 1 March 2023. Retrieved 3 March 2023.
- "Zambia : 2023 ABSA Cup Draws To Be Made On Wednesdsay". Lusaka Times. 28 February 2023. Retrieved 3 March 2023.
- Dube, Godfrey (3 March 2023). "Mighty draws Power in ABSA Cup". Zambia News Diggers. Retrieved 8 March 2023.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - "2023 ABSA Cup Draws To Be Made On". Frontlines Zambia. 1 March 2023. Retrieved 3 March 2023.
- Dube, Godfrey (2 March 2023). "Absa Cup gets K4.4m". Zambia News Diggers!. Retrieved 8 March 2023.