Malawi were not surprise qualifiers. Malawi have been there before. In the 1984 African Cup of Nations hosted by Côte d’Ivoire, Malawi made it to the first round. Then Malawi was in Group B. Group B consisted of Malawi, Ghana, Algeria and Nigeria. Malawi and Nigeria drew 2-2. The Group leaders were Algeria, Nigeria Second, Ghana third and Malawi third from first.

At the 1987 All Africa Games Malawi won the Bronze Medal. Malawi beat Egypt and Cameroon.

Here are some of the achievements:

COSAFA CUP
2 Times runners up

The COSAFA Senior Challenge is an annual tournament for teams from Southern Africa organized by COSAFA, inaugurated after the ban against the Republic of South Africa had been lifted and the African Cup of Nations had been staged there in 1996. Teams that can technically enter are: Angola, Botswana, Comoros, Lesotho, Madagascar, Malawi, Mauritius, Mayotte, Mozambique, Namibia, Réunion, Seychelles, South Africa, Swaziland, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

CECAFA CUP
3 Times Champion (1978, 1979, 1988)
3 Times Runners-up

The CECAFA Senior Challenge Cup is the oldest football (soccer) tournament in Africa. It is a tournament of FIFA and the Council of East and Central Africa Football Associations (CECAFA), and includes national teams from Central and East Africa (Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Sudan, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Zanzibar, Somalia, Rwanda, Burundi and Djibouti). In 2005 and 2006 the tournament was sponsored by Ethiopian/Saudi billionaire Sheikh Mohammed Al Amoudi, and was dubbed the Al Amoudi Senior Challenge Cup.

It is the successor tournament of the Gossage Cup, held 37 times from 1926 until 1966, and the East and Central African Senior Challenge Cup, held 7 times between 1965 and 1971.

So are Malawi not a known side by any means? If you didn’t know now you know. However, I agree with you that if you take them lightly that would be at your own risk.

STRONG OR NOT STRONG, FOOTBALL NEEDS CONCENTRATION AND DETERMINATION. NO FEAR, NO UNDERRATING OTHER TEAMS, NO DEPENDENCE ON PAST VICTORIES! WE DO NOT WANT THE COSAFA SCENARIO WHERE WE LOST TO A WEAK TEAM. PRAY HARD, PREPARE HARD, AND PLAY HARD. THEN THE ROAD TO SOUTH AFRICA WILL BE OPEN. RIGHT NOW THERE ARE THREE ROAD BLOCKS NAMELY IVORY COAST, GUINEA AND BURKINA FASO, WHICH NEED TO BE OPENNED. APPROACH THIS AS A TOUGH GOING, THEN VICTORY WILL BE OURS. WE SHOULD DREAM IN COLOUR (WORLD CUP QUALIFICATION); NOTHING ELSE.

This is for those saying that Egypt will make it because they are the African Champs. We need to avoid the blunder of asserting a causal relationship with the popular fallacy of “post hoc ergo propter hoc” which declares that because some event A happened and immediately afterward event B happened that event A was the cause of event B. Did Egypt lead Group 12 because they are the African Champs?

Also, let’s avoid the popular fallacy that correlation proves causation. Just because in the past African Champs made it to the world Cup doesn’t mean that the same will keep on happening.

In case the so called “ambassadors” of African football don’t make it to the World Cup the teams that will take their places will earn the spots and we’ll need to give them all the support. Let the whiners whine: http://www.worldcupblog.org/world-cup-2006/diouf-requests-world-cup-qualifying-do-over.html