Fleetwood Haiya’s three Years : Why Malawi FA affiliates itch for Haiya second term?

By Edwin Mbewe

LILONGWE-(MaraviPost)-When Fleetwood Haiya walked into the Football Association of Malawi (FAM) presidency on December 16, 2023, he inherited an institution with a strong foundation but also one facing familiar questions: how could Malawian football become more commercially viable, how could clubs become stronger, how could national teams become more competitive, and how could football development reach beyond the traditional centres?

Haiya defeated long-serving incumbent Walter Nyamilandu by 23 votes to 13, promising affiliates that his administration would pursue what he called the “Transforming the Game” agenda.

Almost three years into his first four-year mandate, the question facing the FAM family is no longer simply whether Haiya has changed anything. It is whether the changes are substantial enough, and sustainable enough, to justify giving him another four years to complete the transformation.

The evidence suggests there is a strong case to be made.

1. The biggest argument: Malawi football has become more commercially attractive

Perhaps the clearest measure of Haiya’s leadership is the growth in football’s commercial value.

During his first year in office, FAM reported substantial increases in several sponsorship packages. Airtel increased its Top 8 sponsorship by 188 percent to K688 million; the Castel Challenge Cup rose to K400 million from K320 million; the FDH Bank Cup increased to K150 million from K120 million; and the elite league sponsorship rose to K500 million from K150 million. FAM also secured a three-year, K1 billion sponsorship from NBS Bank for the National Division League.

The bigger development came in 2026.

Malawi’s elite league moved into a new commercial era when FDH Bank committed K5 billion over five years, equivalent to K1 billion per season, to become the title sponsor of the top flight. The competition was renamed the FDH Bank Premiership. The package also included a K100 million player welfare fund and life-plan coverage for participating players.

That is a significant commercial jump for a league that had operated under TNM sponsorship for 18 years.

For clubs, this matters because sponsorship is not merely about putting a company’s name on a competition. A stronger commercial product can mean higher prize money, better club subventions, greater player welfare, better marketing and a more attractive environment for investors.

The 2026 FDH package set the champions’ prize at K200 million, while K320 million was earmarked for club subventions, according to reporting on the new sponsorship structure.

That represents a fundamental shift in the economic proposition of domestic football.

2. The FDH Bank Premiership: a major achievement, but also a lesson in governance

The FDH deal should be regarded as one of the strongest commercial achievements of the Haiya era, although it also illustrates why his second term should be about consolidation rather than celebration.

The launch of the new Premiership was temporarily thrown into crisis in April 2026 after a dispute between FAM and the Super League of Malawi over the use of Kamuzu Stadium. FDH Bank briefly suspended its sports sponsorships, a portfolio reported at around K7.5 billion. Haiya subsequently apologised to stakeholders and said FAM would engage the sponsor.

Importantly, the sponsorship was restored after constructive engagements, with FDH Bank lifting the suspension in May 2026.

The episode should therefore not be ignored by affiliates. It is a reminder that commercial growth must be accompanied by strong stakeholder management.

But the fact that the relationship survived the crisis—and that the K5 billion five-year deal remains in place—is itself significant.

The lesson for a second Haiya term is clear: build the commercial gains, but improve coordination between FAM, SULOM, clubs, sponsors and government so that disagreements do not threaten the very partnerships football has worked hard to secure.

3. The Scorchers have moved from regional success to the world stage

If one achievement has transformed the international perception of Malawian football during Haiya’s tenure, it is the rise of the Scorchers.

What can be credited to the current FAM administration is the creation of an environment in which the women’s national team has continued to receive greater competitive exposure, technical support, strategic attention and commercial investment.

The breakthrough came in October 2025, when Malawi defeated Angola 2-0 to qualify for its first-ever Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON).

Then came the extraordinary 2026 WAFCON campaign.

The Scorchers reached the tournament for the first time, defeated defending champions Nigeria 3-2, reached the quarter-finals and beat Ghana 2-1 to qualify for Malawi’s first-ever FIFA Women’s World Cup. They subsequently defeated Algeria 3-1 to reach the WAFCON final on their debut.

They eventually finished as runners-up after losing the final to Cameroon, but the achievement was historic nonetheless.

FIFA itself has linked the breakthrough to years of investment in women’s and grassroots football, including FIFA Forward-supported facilities and development programmes. FIFA specifically highlighted improvements at the Chiwembe Technical Centre, including changing rooms, a players’ tunnel and a covered stand capable of holding 6,000 spectators.

This is where Haiya’s case becomes particularly compelling.

A president cannot score the goals, make the saves or coach the team. The credit belongs first to the players and technical staff. But the job of a football association is to create the conditions in which those players and coaches can succeed.

On that measure, FAM’s women’s football record under Haiya has become difficult to dismiss.

4. Women’s football is no longer being treated simply as national-team football

Another important development is the creation of a structured women’s domestic competition.

In 2025, FAM and National Bank of Malawi launched the country’s first national women’s football league. The NBM Women’s Premiership allocated more than 75 percent of sponsorship directly to teams and players through subventions, prize money and equipment. Each participating club was set to receive K13 million in subvention, two full sets of uniforms and five footballs.

By September 2026, FAM had again disbursed K100 million to 10 NBM Women’s Premiership clubs, with each club receiving K10 million as the first tranche of its participation subvention.

FAM also launched a Women’s Football Strategic Plan for 2025-2027, covering grassroots football, elite competitions, governance, marketing, communications and technical development.

This is arguably more important than a single tournament victory.

If the Scorchers are to remain competitive, Malawi needs a pipeline of players. That requires clubs, leagues, coaches, competitions and grassroots structures.

The second-term argument therefore becomes: Haiya has started building the women’s football ecosystem; give him another term to finish it.

5. Beach Soccer has gained visibility and institutional support

Beach soccer is another area in which the Haiya administration can point to measurable progress.

In March 2024, Malawi’s Beach Soccer national team reached the COSAFA Championship semi-finals and eventually won the bronze medal after defeating Saudi Arabia 5-4. COSAFA confirmed the bronze-medal finish.

The administration has also pushed the development of the game domestically.

In 2025, FAM staged its national beach soccer championship with teams qualifying from regional leagues, while sponsorship was secured to provide kits for participating teams. WSB Malawi provided a K6 million sponsorship package to kit all six teams.

More significantly, in January 2026 the Beach Soccer Association praised FAM for providing K83 million in advance operational funding for zonal beach soccer leagues—the first time, according to the association, that it had received such funding in advance.

This demonstrates a broader philosophy in Haiya’s administration: national-team football is being accompanied by attempts to strengthen the structures underneath it.

6. Clubs have received more direct attention

For the clubs, one of the most significant policy changes was FAM’s commitment to assist Malawi’s representatives in CAF inter-club competitions.

In 2024, Haiya announced that FAM would provide K100 million to each Malawian club participating in CAF inter-club competitions. FCB Nyasa Big Bullets welcomed the move, saying the money would supplement its continental budget.

That is important because Malawian clubs have historically struggled to finance continental campaigns.

The administration has also moved toward greater professionalisation through club licensing. By April 2026, FAM had granted full licences to 14 Super League clubs, compared with 11 the previous year. FAM said the improvement showed progress in compliance and professionalism, while clubs from lower divisions were also beginning to arrive in the top flight with better structures.

In May 2026, FAM also hosted a FIFA club-management workshop covering governance, strategic planning, financial management, marketing, commercial operations and match organisation. Representatives of both men’s and women’s clubs participated.

That may not generate the excitement of a national-team victory, but it is precisely the type of institutional work required to make clubs sustainable.

7. The National Division League has become part of the transformation agenda

Haiya’s administration also secured NBS Bank backing for the National Division League, providing a structured bridge between regional football and the elite level.

The sponsorship has since grown, with the 2026 package reaching K530 million and participating teams receiving K20 million each in subvention, alongside uniforms and prize money.

That is significant because football development cannot depend only on the 16 or so teams in the top division.

A serious football pyramid must have a functioning second tier and regional structures.

The development of the National Division League therefore strengthens the argument that Haiya’s administration has been thinking about the football pyramid rather than concentrating exclusively on the Flames.

8. Infrastructure and grassroots football

Haiya’s original manifesto placed considerable emphasis on infrastructure, grassroots football and youth development.

Within his first year, FAM opened the Luwinga Inclusive Academy in Mzuzu, while the administration also invested in school and youth football.

The FIFA relationship has also remained important. Immediately after his election, Haiya met FIFA President Gianni Infantino and discussed grassroots football and infrastructure. FIFA subsequently highlighted Malawi’s use of FIFA Forward funding for technical-centre improvements and grassroots development.

The significance is not just physical infrastructure.

If Malawi wants to produce another generation of Temwa Chawingas, Tabitha Chawingas and other international-level players, it needs facilities, coaches, competitions and scouting systems.

Haiya’s administration has at least moved that conversation from rhetoric towards programmes.

9. A stronger commercial culture around the game

Another achievement that deserves attention is the expansion of football beyond traditional sponsorship of competitions.

In 2025, FAM signed a two-year technical partnership with Admiral worth approximately K200 million per year, providing kits and merchandise for the Flames, Scorchers, Beach Soccer team and other national teams.

FAM also secured a K1 billion NBM sponsorship for women’s and district football in 2025.

These deals demonstrate that football is increasingly being packaged as a portfolio of commercial properties rather than a single national-team product.

That is exactly the direction Malawi football needs if it is to reduce dependence on traditional sources of funding.

10. There is evidence of better planning

One of Haiya’s less glamorous but potentially most important achievements was the launch of FAM’s first 10-year strategic plan, covering 2024-2034.

For an organisation whose leadership changes through elections, long-term planning is essential.

The value of a strategic plan is that football development should not begin and end with an individual president.

The challenge for Haiya’s second term would therefore be to turn the plan into measurable annual targets, publish progress against those targets and ensure that future administrations inherit functioning systems rather than another collection of promises.

But why should affiliates trust him again?

The strongest argument is not that everything under Haiya has been perfect. It has not.

His own administration acknowledged that 2024 was a mixed year, particularly pointing to the Flames’ poor start in the Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers.

There have also been disputes involving FAM, SULOM, clubs and stadium management. The FDH Bank sponsorship crisis demonstrated how quickly governance disputes can threaten commercial partnerships. Some regional affiliates have also complained that Haiya’s engagement with them has not always been sufficient. In 2026, for example, officials from the Southern Region Football Association reportedly appreciated his achievements but complained that he had taken too long to engage them and did not attend their activities as frequently as other regional associations would have liked.

These are legitimate concerns.

But they are arguments for improvement, not necessarily arguments for abandonment.

The question affiliates should ask is not: Has Haiya solved every problem in Malawian football?

No president could do that in four years.

The better question is: Has his administration created measurable momentum that would be easier to build on than to start again from scratch?

On the available evidence, the answer is yes.

The case for four more years

A second Haiya term should be presented not as a reward for what has already been achieved, but as an opportunity to complete unfinished work.

The first term has produced:

• Major growth in football sponsorship values.
• The K5 billion FDH Bank Premiership deal.
• Greater financial support for clubs in CAF competitions.
• The creation and expansion of structured women’s football.
• The historic Scorchers qualification for WAFCON.
• Malawi’s first-ever FIFA Women’s World Cup qualification.
• Malawi’s historic WAFCON final appearance.
• Greater investment in beach soccer.
• Increased support for district and grassroots football.
• Improved club licensing and professionalisation.
• A 10-year FAM strategic plan.
• Greater engagement with FIFA and international football-development programmes.
• New technical and commercial partnerships.
• Increased international activity for Malawi’s national teams.

And perhaps most importantly, there is evidence that corporate Malawi increasingly sees football as an investable property.

National Bank’s decision in September 2026 to increase its annual FAM football sponsorship from K930 million to K2.3 billion, including K1.3 billion for the Scorchers, the NBM Women’s Premiership and the NBM Under-23 Championship, is particularly telling. NBM executives explicitly linked the increased investment to satisfaction with the previous partnership and the impact of investment in women’s football.

That is the kind of external validation a football association needs.

The verdict

Fleetwood Haiya should not be judged merely by whether Malawi’s men’s national team has won enough matches.

Nor should he receive automatic credit for every success achieved by a national team whose players and coaches deserve enormous recognition.

He should be judged on whether FAM is becoming better organised, better financed, more commercially attractive, more inclusive and more capable of developing football beyond the national team.

By those measures, the Haiya administration has made a credible case.

The Scorchers’ historic rise, the growth of women’s football, the development of beach soccer, increased club support, the professionalisation of club licensing, the NBS investment in lower-league football and, above all, the dramatic increase in commercial value of the domestic game point towards a football association that is changing its operating model.

The unfinished business is equally clear: improve the Flames, strengthen governance, maintain sponsor confidence, improve stadium infrastructure, deepen regional engagement, make clubs financially sustainable and ensure that the commercial gains reach the grassroots.

That is why the argument for another four years should not simply be “Haiya has done well.”

It should be:

“Haiya has started something that now needs continuity.”

For FAM affiliates, the choice in the next election should ultimately be about which leadership team offers the strongest combination of experience, measurable results, institutional stability and a credible plan for the next stage.

Haiya’s first term has given him something every incumbent wants before an election: a record that can be measured.

The Scorchers have reached the World Cup. Women’s football has acquired a national league. Beach soccer has gained support. Clubs have received greater assistance. The domestic league has moved from a K500 million sponsorship environment to a K5 billion five-year commercial agreement. And corporate investment in football has expanded significantly.

The next four years should therefore be about turning those breakthroughs into institutions that can survive beyond Fleetwood Haiya himself.

If he can convince affiliates that he has learnt from the first term’s weaknesses as much as he has built on its successes, then there is a compelling argument that Malawi football may benefit more from continuity and consolidation than another change of direction.

The first term was about transforming the game. A second term should be about making that transformation permanent.