Rated as one of the country's greatest players and coaches, he featured for Rhokana United and was one of the first Zambians to play professional football abroad when he joined American side Atlanta Chiefs in 1967.

He later moved to Buseko Primary School where Mwila was involved, like many other young boys on the Copperbelt, in playing football in the townships where nothing but buttons were at stake.

Mwila continued playing football at Kalela and was very keen on watching soccer matches at Scrivener Stadium, where he managed to be present at almost every game through being a ball-boy.

They played a similar team from Luanshya nearly every month and this was how he came into contact with players like Boniface Simutowe, Sandy Kaposa and Simon Kapende.

[citation needed] Mwila also had an opportunity to visit his parents, and on his return from Bulawayo, he moved to Kitwe Main School to complete his primary education.

Mwila qualified for secondary education and went to Luanshimba School in 1964, and while a student there, he frequented Scrivener Stadium and trained regularly in the company of Edward Kalale, Lazarus Musumali, Eric Chekoloko, Isaac Musakanya and Simon Chande, players that coach White had brought in to rejuvenate the team.

That same year, Mwila left school to join Rothmans of Pall mall as a trainee salesman and in 1966, the company organised a course in salesmanship at Nairobi's New Era College for six months.

and he read in the papers that four Zambians Howard Mwikuta, Emment Kapengwe, Samuel "Zoom" Ndhlovu and Mwila himself had been picked by British coach Phil Woosnam to go and play in the professional league in America, with the Atlanta Chiefs.

[2][citation needed] It sounded like sour grapes when City coach Malcolm Allison described Chief's play as worse than 'fourth division standard,' and that Mwila was offside.

He was particularly incensed by one Football Association of Zambia (FAZ) official who entered the dressing room at half-time and told Boniface Simutowe he looked 'very excited' during the first half, and also suggested to Mwila and Musumali that certain players should be replaced.

In 1971, Mwila returned to Atlanta in March 1971 to complete the two-year contract he had signed in 1968, fearing that if he objected, the club would take action against him since he was still regarded as their player.

He was also unhappy with comments attributed to FAZ Secretary General Ernest Mate that the players did not achieve anything from their overseas trips, for each time they came back to Zambia they failed lamentably to cope with the standard of football.

[10] Mwila made his debut for Zambia at the age of 18 against English side Middlesex Wanderers on 13 June 1965 and scored the first goal in a 2–2 draw in Ndola.

[12] He was recruited by Zambia Police side Nkwazi at the beginning of the following year but was sidelined after 6 months when players accused him of ill-treating them and handling them like small children.

'[13] A string of defeats did not help matters and furthermore, Nkwazi forfeited points in three league matches because they used Mwila as a player when he was only registered as a coach.

Mwila countered that when he went to Nkwazi, he was told that he would build a team in three years but things changed and the officials wanted instant success.

Anyway, a human being has his good and bad days.’ After leaving Nkwazi, he crossed the border into Botswana and took over as coach of first division team Tafic FC.

However, barely a year later, his mother died, and he returned to Zambia to take up a coaching job at Power Dynamos, a side that was then being called "The Baby Born With Teeth'’ due to its meteoric rise from the lower ranks.

Mwila became the first Zambian coach to lead a local side to the finals of a continental championship which Dynamos lost 4–0 on aggregate to Egypt's Arab Contractors in 1982.

In the final, Dynamos drew 0–0 with Camerounian giants Tonnere Yaonde FC and won 5–4 on post match penalties with 'keeper Blackwell Chalwe saving the decisive spot-kick after a goalless 90 minutes.

In 1984, Dynamos were tipped to win the league title and they lived up to people's expectations when they went on an unbeaten run from the beginning of the season in the first week of March to the end of October when 'Mighty' Mufulira Wanderers stopped them 2–0.

In 1987, Arthur Davies, the man who had nurtured Power Dynamos to the force they were crossed over to FAZ Division II side Circuit Chiefs and took over as chairman and hired Mwila as coach.

Mwila was part of Zambia's coaching bench during the President's Cup in South Korea but for undisclosed reasons, was sidelined after that and he missed the Seoul Olympics as a result.

He took up the job with the assistance of German coach Jochen Figge as Technical Advisor and qualified the team to the final of the tournament which Zambia won by beating Zimbabwe 3–1 in Gaborone in August.

Five years after leaving Dynamos, Mwila returned as coach amid reports of some players boycotting training upon hearing the news.

After being pipped to the coach of the year award by Godfrey Chitalu, Mwila announced his resignation from Dynamos to take over at Township Rollers in Botswana.

'[18] The duo's reign was short-lived as they resigned on 11 April 1997 when Zambia failed to beat Zaire in a World Cup qualifier, drawing 2–2 in Harare.

The crash left him with two broken legs but fortunate to escape with his life as Malawian coach Robert Banda, who was driving the car, died instantly in the collision.