ABSA Cup final: Dynamos eye double as Mutapa calls for focus

Zambia Super League champions Power Dynamos head coach Osward Mutapa says his side is ready for Sunday’s ABSA Cup final against Red Arrows, but warned against taking the game lightly.

After securing the league title, Dynamos have shifted ifts attention to cup duties against a familiar foe at the Levy Mwanawasa Stadium in Ndola. sports24.club

Dynamos etched their name deeper into Zambian football history after sealing the 2025-26 league title with four games to spare, following a hard-fought 2-1 victory over Konkola Blades in Chililabombwe last Saturday.

ABSA-CUP Final . pic.twitter.com/2WaqJiTMBV

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— Power Dynamos FC (@PowerDynamosFC) May 8, 2026

The Kitwe giants not only clinched their ninth league crown but also achieved a historic milestone, successfully defending the title for the first time in the club’s history.

Dynamos mentally and physically prepared

“We have done enough going into the final,” Mutapa told the media. “Every player has featured this season, so we are mentally and physically prepared. Now it’s about application on the day.”

Mutapa said his side cannot throw caution to the wind despite facing a team that is second in the league.

“They are second for a reason. You can’t rule them out. This is football, you only win when you take your moments,” he said.

This is the second time the two teams are meeting in the cup in the last two seasons with the last meeting having been a semi-final encounter that saw Power lose.

Mutapa said the previous result has no bearing on what will happen on Sunday.

“That was then. This is a final. We must apply ourselves correctly and take our chances,” he said.

Red Arrows are back for fourth time

Meanwhile, Dynamos vice-captain Salulani Phiri echoed the coach’s sentiments, saying consistency has been key to Power’s run to the final.

“Consistency has brought us here. This is a cup the club hasn’t won in a long time. We want to win it and write our names into Power Dynamos history,” Phiri said.

The memories were still fresh last year, the Airmen shot down Power Dynamos in the semifinals before narrowly losing the title to Zesco United on heartbreaking post-match penalties.

Now, Red Arrows are back for the fourth time in five years, hungry, battle tested and determined to finish mission Ndola.

But Dynamos might be looking out for revenge and ready to turn the tables in what promises to be an explosive final.

The match has been billed for the Levy Mwanawasa in what promises to be a thrilling encounter between two of Zambia’s top sides chasing the K1.1 million prize money.

Zimbabwe’s decorated coach Norman Mapeza spent over a decade building his trophy-laden empire at FC Platinum before taking on his current job at Scottland FC.

Between 2014 and 2024, the former Zimbabwe coach turned the miners into a formidable force, winning three Castle Lager Premier Soccer League (PSL) titles.

On Saturday, he will try to dismantle the very same giant he built at Mandava Stadium. Mapeza will lead his new employers, Scottland FC into battle against FC Platinum while carrying a weight of emotions.

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Why Mapeza is emotional

“The boys have been working hard knowing exactly that we are going to face a very good team on Saturday FC Platinum. So far, so good,” the ex-Warriors star said.

“It is an emotional feeling. I have been in Zvishavane for nearly a decade—about 10 years and a half—so I have so many friends. It was like my second home, so it is an emotional feeling going back to a place where I grew up as a coach.”

Despite the emotional attachment with the miners, the coach knows that his side needs to focus on collecting maximum points.

“Like I said, I had so many friends there but at the end of the day, we are going there to play a game of football. I am with Scottland FC and now it is very important to go there and try to come back home with a positive result,” the coach added.

Scottland FC desperate to bounce back

The Castle Lager PSL champions are desperate to bounce from last Sunday’s shock 2-1 loss to Simba Bhora, a result that breached their unbeaten run.

Mapeza said the defeat affected some players psychologically, but he had tried to lift them up.

“Usually, some players tend to struggle mentally, but we spoke to the boys when we started training on Tuesday, that in this industry, it is part of this journey. There was a point where we were going to drop points and this happened on Sunday. However, in terms of performance, we did well. If we had buried those chances, we could have been talking a different story,” he added.

After last weekend’s defeat the Castle Lager PSL defending champions lie in third position on the log standings, trailing five points behind the early pacesetters, CAPS United.

Castle Lager PSL Fixtures

• All games kick off at 3pm Southern African Time

Saturday, 9 May

MWOS FC v Chicken Inn FC

FC Platinum v Scottland FC

FC Hunters v Ngezi Platinum Stars

TelOne FC v HardRock FC

Simba Bhora v ZPC Kariba

Bulawayo Chiefs v Herentals College FC

Image: Mapeza: Scottland FC

Manica Diamonds v Agama FC

Sunday, 10 May

Highlanders FC v Triangle United

Dynamos FC v CAPS United

The iGaming AFRIKA Summit 2026 closed on a glittering high note, as the continent’s most influential gaming operators, suppliers, regulators, and innovators gathered for a landmark Winners of iGaming AFRIKA SUMMIT AWARDS 2026 announced ceremony at Nairobi’s Haytt Regency Hotel.

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Opening the evening ceremony, iGaming AFRIKA’s CEO and founder Jeremiah Maangi heartily welcomed all the guests acknowledging that all those shortlisted were winners. “You are all winners; we just had to choose one winner per category. Congratulations to all the different teams receiving awards tonight,” Mr. Maangi remarked.

Full list of winners

About iGaming AFRIKA

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About IGA Summit

The iGaming Afrika Summit 2026 is Africa’s premier gathering for gaming professionals, regulators, operators, and innovators. Created to unite the continent’s rapidly evolving gaming ecosystem, IGA brings together industry leaders to shape the future of African gaming through meaningful connections, forwardthinking ideas, and unforgettable shared experiences.

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A huge weekend is coming up in LALIGA EA SPORTS, with FC Barcelona and Real Madrid facing off in El Clasico on Sunday night, a match which could mathematically determine the result of the title race. There are other hugely important games too, especially in the relegation battle, so it should be a thrilling weekend of action.

The first game takes place at the Estadi Ciutat de València on Friday night, where Levante UD desperately need a win if they’re to give themselves any hope of survival. The second-bottom club take on a mid-table CA Osasuna side, and will look for what would be a fourth home victory in a row.

Saturday begins with two major matches in the relegation battle, starting with 14th-placed Elche CF vs 18th-placed Deportivo Alavés. With the Basque side having dropped into the bottom three, they’ll want a three-point haul against a direct relegation rival to climb back to safety as quickly as possible.

Next, it’s 17th-placed Sevilla FC against 13th-placed RCD Espanyol, a meeting of two historic clubs who once contested a European final. Nowadays, however, they’re sweating it out near the bottom of the LALIGA EA SPORTS table, with relegation a real possibility. As such, an intense duel should be expected.

Atlético de Madrid are in action next, taking on RC Celta at home. Following their Champions League disappointment in midweek, Los Colchoneros will look to mathematically confirm their qualification for the top UEFA tournament with a victory in this one.

Real Sociedad and Real Betis face off in the Saturday night game, and both of these clubs also harbour some hopes of qualifying for next season’s Champions League. If fifth place becomes a ticket to the top UEFA competition, then both these clubs will hope to finish there and this direct duel could be key to deciding who makes it.

Villarreal CF, meanwhile, have already clinched their ticket to the Champions League, so El Submarino Amarillo can approach their Sunday lunchtime trip to RCD Mallorca with a greater sense of calm. The islanders, on the other hand, need every point they can muster in the relegation battle, so it’ll be interesting to see if Vedat Muriqi and co. can take down the third-placed side.

The next match takes place in Bilbao, where Athletic Club fans will hope for a win against Valencia CF in order to keep their European qualification dreams alive. Ernesto Valverde is leaving at the end of the season and this is his penultimate home game, so San Mamés is expected to be packed as the coach aims to leave his beloved club in as high a position as possible.

Real Oviedo, who secured a long-awaited return to the top tier this time last year, enter their Sunday afternoon game at home to Getafe CF aware that they could be relegated this weekend. Even if survival seems unlikely at this point, the supporters at the Estadio Carlos Tartiere will hope to keep the dream alive for at least another week by winning this Sunday.

Then, at 21:00 CEST on Sunday night, it’s time for ELCLASICO between FC Barcelona and Real Madrid. Never before have Barça clinched a LALIGA EA SPORTS title in this fixture, but they could do so this matchday with a draw or a victory. Real Madrid, of course, will look to spoil the party, and to repeat their victory from earlier in the season, when Kylian Mbappé and Jude Bellingham scored in a 2-1 win at the Bernabéu. Whatever happens, this is one football fans around the world won’t want to miss.

The matchday ends with one more fixture on Monday, as Rayo Vallecano and Girona FC meet in Vallecas. By the time of kick-off, Girona FC might be inside the relegation zone, so this could be a truly decisive game for the Catalan side who have lost their past three fixtures. At this stage of the season, every game really matters more, so this promises to be a matchday to remember.

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