The Schools Championship, which is expected to draw over 3,000 participating Schools, will begin next month under the auspices of the Football Association of Zambia (FAZ).
The COSAFA Schools Championship, which was inaugurated and contested in Malawi this year, is intended to pick players who will represent Zambia, according to FAZ Technical Director LYSON ZULU.
ZULU claims that the FA is rushing to ensure that the competition starts in order to ensure that representatives are chosen on time, despite Zambia not being one of the competitors in this year’s inaugural COSAFA Schools Cup.
He claims that 16 schools participated in a trial initiative that was started last year on the Copperbelt.
In an interview, ZULU claimed that establishing a championship will guarantee that the best players are chosen to represent the nation.
He claimed that the initiative created as part of the FIFA Football Schools Project will also provide the FA with a larger pool of potential players to choose from for the Under 15, 17 and 20 squads.