Wanderers Set Sights on CAF Champions League Group Stages After Ending Title Drought

Mighty Wanderers Football Club are targeting a place in the group stages of the 2026/27 CAF Champions League following their triumphant return to domestic dominance after an eight-year championship drought.

The Nomads clinched the 2025 TNM Super League title with 69 points—an 11-point improvement on last season’s runner-up finish of 58 points—demonstrating the resilience and determination that characterized their campaign.

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Fresh from their trophy parade, which stretched from Lilongwe to Blantyre and culminated at the club’s headquarters, Wanderers’ hierarchy wasted no time in setting ambitious continental targets.

Director of Football David Kanyenda confirmed the club’s participation in Africa’s premier club competition and outlined their determination to break new ground for Malawian football.

“We will have thorough preparations. We know it is for the elite, but we will not be joining just to make the numbers. We will also beef up the squad,” Kanyenda told Zodiak Radio following Wanderers’ emphatic 6-0 victory over Moyale Barracks in their penultimate league match in Blantyre last week.

Kanyenda pointed to the club’s recent continental experience as evidence of their growing competitiveness at the African level. Earlier this season, Wanderers were eliminated from the CAF Confederation Cup by Botswana’s Jwaneng Galaxy in the first preliminary round, but the director insists the manner of their exit demonstrates progress.

“It should also be borne in mind that in the Confederation Cup, we were knocked out on post-match penalties, which are like a lottery. We won 1-0 at home and they beat us by a similar margin away,” he explained.

The tie ended 1-1 on aggregate before Galaxy prevailed in the penalty shootout, leaving Wanderers to reflect on what might have been.

Kanyenda believes the squad’s growing exposure to high-level competition will serve them well in their Champions League campaign.

“Most of our players are now exposed to playing on the international stage, including those that have played for the national team,” he said.

The ambitious declaration comes amid bold predictions from the club’s leadership. During the trophy parade celebrations at the Wanderers clubhouse, Kanyenda proclaimed the team’s intention to defend their domestic title for the next seven years—a statement that underscores the club’s renewed confidence.

Wanderers’ target of reaching the Champions League group stages represents a significant challenge. Malawian clubs have struggled to make an impact on the continental stage since 2004, when FCB Nyasa Big Bullets became the last team from the country to reach the group phase of African competition.

Despite their domestic dominance in recent years, Bullets have been unable to replicate that historic achievement. Meanwhile, both Wanderers and Silver Strikers have endured early exits in recent continental campaigns.

This season alone highlighted the difficulty Malawian clubs face abroad. While Wanderers fell to Jwaneng Galaxy in the Confederation Cup, league champions Silver Strikers were eliminated from the Champions League by Young Africa Sports Club of the Democratic Republic of Congo in the preliminary rounds.

Wanderers’ determination to buck this trend and reach the group stages would mark a significant milestone for Malawian football, potentially reigniting the country’s presence on the continental stage after more than two decades of disappointment