Tabitha Chaŵinga

About

Tabitha Chaŵinga (born 22 May 1996) is a Malawian professional footballer who plays as a forward for Première Ligue club Lyon and the Malawi national team.

Born on 22 May 1996 in Rumphi District in northern Malawi, Chaŵinga is the third of five children born to her parents. She is of Tumbuka ethnicity. She began playing football at age five and played with boys until age 13 when she began playing for girls’ club, DD Sunshine in the capital city, Lilongwe. Already at this age she was forced to undress because “Her opponents did not believe she was female because of her physical appearance and how well she played.” Her sister, Temwa, is also a professional footballer.

At age 18, Chaŵinga played for Swedish third-division club Krokom/Dvärsätts IF, where she earned the league’s golden boot after scoring 39 goals in 18 games. She was the first women’s footballer from Malawi to play for a European club.

Chaŵinga joined Kvarnsvedens IK in Sweden’s Elitettan in 2015. In her debut for the club, she scored a brace in a 4–0 win over Lidköpings FK. The club finished in first place during the regular…