The 2026-27 Airtel Top 8 will get underway with two quarterfinal first-leg matches at Bingu National Stadium in Lilongwe on Saturday, June 13, 2026.
The Football Association of Malawi (Fam) released the fixtures Wednesday.
The 2026 edition will kick off with a match between 2018 winners Blue Eagles and Civil Service United at 14:00 before holders FCB Nyasa Big Bullets face Ekhaya at the same venue later in the day.
The quarterfinal action will continue on Sunday, June 14 as 2022 winners Mighty Wanderers face Creck Sporting Club at Zomba Stadium while two-time winners Silver Strikers host Karonga United at Silver Stadium.
In line with tournament rules, the top four teams have been rewarded with home advantage in the first legs of the quarterfinals.
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The return legs are scheduled for July 11 and 12, 2026. Ekhaya will host Bullets at Mpira Stadium on July 11 while Civil will face Eagles at Civo Stadium.
Action will continue on Sunday, July 12 as Creck face Wanderers at Aubrey Dimba Stadium while Karonga host Silver at Karonga Stadium.
Fam has maintained the competition format, with the quarterfinals to be played on a knockout basis over two legs in a homeand-away arrangement.
Aggregate scores and the away goals rule will determine the four teams that advance to the semifinals.
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Fam said the semifinals are expected to be played on August 1 and 2 before the final on August 29 at a venue yet to be announced.
This year’s winners will pocket K40 million, up from K35 million last year, while the runners-up will receive K14 million.
All eight participating teams will receive K4 million each.
The player of the tournament will receive K2 million while the top goalscorer will pocket K1.35 million. The player of the match in each game will receive K140,000.
Bullets have won three consecutive Airtel Top 8 titles in 2023, 2024 and 2025. Last year, they defeated Silver 4-3 on post-match penalties after a 1-1 stalemate in regulation time.
Overall, Bullets have won four Airtel Top 8 titles while Silver have two.
Wanderers and Eagles have one title each.
