The 2023 Absa Cup was the 16th edition of the annual knock-out competition in Zambian football contested by the top 6 teams from the Super League and the top 2 teams from the National Division One following the conclusion of match day 17 of the 2022–23 season.[1] It was also the 4th edition under the "Absa Cup" name following Absa's completed acquisition of the African assets and operations of Barclays in 2018.[2][3]
NAPSA Stars were defending champions after defeating Red Arrows 1–0 to win the previous edition's title.[4][5][6] but failed to qualify for this edition after finding themselves in 11th place in the standings mid-season.
The video assistant referee (VAR) was introduced to the competition and implemented on a pilot basis at this edition's final,[7] which was a first in Zambian football and Sub-Saharan African football as a whole and thus put Zambia on the list as the 3rd African country after Morocco and Egypt to introduce and implement VAR in domestic football matches.[8] Head of referees at FAZ, Aziph Banda, cited the inadequacy of FIFA-certified referees to operate it, with female referee Diana Chikotesha being the only exception having previously experienced its usage at the 2022 Women's Africa Cup of Nations and Janny Sikazwe having retired from professional refereeingas the reason why the association appointed foreign referees solely for that final,[9] which was won by Forest Rangers
The draw was held at a relocated headquarters of Absa Bank Zambia in Lusaka[11] on 1 March 2023.[1][12][13][14][15] Green Buffaloes, Green Eagles, Red Arrows and Power Dynamos were seeded by virtue of their performances in the previous editions of the Absa Cup with Mufulira Wanderers, Trident FC, Maestro United and Forest Rangers being unseeded.[1][13][14][15]
Absa Bank Zambia announced a tournament prize and logistical monetary increment a day before the draw ceremony, i.e. on 28 February 2023 which are as follows:[1][16][11]
^ abcde"2023 ABSA Cup draw set for Wednesday". ZamFoot. 28 February 2023. Retrieved 3 March 2023. The eight teams involved in the 2023 Absa Cup comprise the top six clubs from MTN Super League and the top two FAZ National Division One clubs as of Week 17.
