Walter Africa’s longest serving FA president

Immediate-past Football Association of Malawi (FAM) president Walter Nyamilandu,  who lost to Fleetwood Haiya in last Saturday’s elections, leaves the stage as Africa’s longest serving football association (FA) president.

According to Confederation of African Football (CAF) database, he tops the list having served as FAM president for 19 years from 2004 to 2023.

Second on the continent is former Ghana Football Association president Kwesi Nyantakyi who served for 13 years from 2005 to 2018.

Nyantakyi was forced to resign and banned for life by Fifa in 2018 following a video in which he was exposed taking a bribe.

On the local scene, Nyamilandu served 13 years more than the second longest serving FAM president Eric Orton, who served between 1957 and 1963 during the Nyasaland era.

To his credit, he is the only Malawian to have been elected into Fifa Council in 2018 and is an executive member of CAF and Cosafa.

Nyamilandu’s reign at FAM started in 2004 when he won a by-election after defeating Geoff Gondwe and Hastings Kapenuka at just 33-years-old.

He went on to win a second term in 2007 after defeating former Super League of Malawi (Sulom) president Henry Chibowa.

Nyamilandu won his third term in 2011 after defeating Chibowa for the second time.

In 2015, he won his fourth term after beating banker Wilkins Mijiga and Canada-based businessperson Willy Yabwanya Phiri.

In 2016 Fifa announced major reforms following the resignation of Sepp Blatter and election of Giovanni Infantino, including three term limits for executive positions.

Following the reforms at Fifa, FAM aligned its statutes to that of Fifa, introducing the three-term limits.

In 2019, Nyamilandu beat his then first-vice president James Mwenda by 23 votes against 13 for his fifth term.

Four years later, Nyamilandu has lost the seat to Haiya by the same margin.

Reflecting on his 19 years as FAM president, Nyamilandu said he was proud of his achievements.

He said: “I am happy to leave the stage in a better place than I found it. I would like to express my gratitude to Malawians for granting me the rare opportunity to lead Malawi football.

“Thank you for your support and collaboration in moving football forward. We raised the bar by achieving significant milestones that brought joy and pride to our nation.

“However, at this juncture, it is time to move on by leaving the legacy behind as well as bridging the gap mindset. In all things we give thanks to God.”

In his acceptance speech, Haiya applauded Nyamilandu for laying the foundation for football development in his reign.

He said: “Allow me to applaud my predecessor Mr Walter Nyamilandu for his service to the nation and to the game. You have laid strong foundations and I promise not to break them but to continue building a transformative super structure over it.

“I wish you all the best and hope you will always be available when we seek counsel in managing the game.”