It does not get any better than this as the 2026 domestic football season gets underway this afternoon.
Arch-rivals Mighty Wanderers and FCB Nyasa Big Bullets open their 2026 instalment as they clash in the NBS Bank Charity Shield at Bingu National Stadium (BNS) in Lilongwe this afternoon.
This is the ninth edition of the Charity Shield since its inception in 2016. It is a high stakes match.
Records and pride will be at stake this afternoon.
Both Bullets and Wanderers will be looking for the first piece of silverware this afternoon.
- Advertisement -
Bullets have mastered the art of winning the Charity Shield having won the title in every edition they participated in since 2016.
Three of those seven titles came after beating Wanderers.
Their first meeting in the Charity Shield was in 2016 and Bullets beat Wanderers 2-0 before another 1-0 victory in 2019.
Bullets continued their dominance in the Charity Shield when they beat Wanderers 2-1 in the 2023 edition at BNS.
- Advertisement -
- Advertisement -
Wanderers, on the other hand, will be looking to break their winless run in the Charity Shield.
The Nomads have lost all four of the previous Charity Shield matches.
Last year, Wanderers lost to Silver Strikers 3-5 on post-match penalties after a 2-2 stalemate in regulation time last season.
But the Nomads go into this year’s match with a spring in their step having beaten their rivals three times in all competitions last year.
Wanderers beat Bullets 1- 0 in the first round before a 3-0 win in the second round. They also triumphed 1-0 in the FDH Bank Cup semi-final at Kamuzu Stadium.
Both teams go into the match with renewed hope having bolstered their respective squads.
Bullets have signed players such as George Chaomba, Emmanuel Kaunga, Ahmed Kung’unde, Clever Kalambo, Pilirani Mapira and Maclean Mwale.
Wanderers, on the other hand, have signed Peter Ng’ambi, Lameck Mithi, Dalitso Nahipa and Alex Kambilinya.
The Nomads will be without head coach Bob Mpinganjira, who is in England for training placement.
Despite Wanderers’ poor record in the Charity Shield, assistant coach MacDonald ‘Nginde’ Mtetemera said they are ready for a perfect take off.
“Yes, we beat them three times last season but this is another season. We know they will come hard on us but we have put in extra gear to win the match,” Mtetemera said.
Mtetemera said there will be no room for complacency in today’s match.
“We have forgotten what we did in the past. We are not thinking about complacency, the league will start tomorrow [today],” he said.
Bullets coach Gilbert Chirwa said his charges are geared for the match.
“They beat us three times last year but it will not be the same. It is a different year and the players are motivated,” Chirwa said.
Chirwa said his side would be looking to build on last season’s success.
“We had a good run and we intend to continue with the same. Every time we meet Wanderers, the tempo is very high,” he said.
Since 2016, the Charity Shield has produced two winners only, with Bullets (seven) and Silver once.
Bullets have appeared in seven Charity Shield matches since 2016 whereas Wanderers have made four appearances.
Wanderers won the league last season whereas Bullets won the Castel Challenge Cup and the Airtel Top 8.
