Online Reporter
Eddie Chikamhi-Zimpapers Sports Hub
IN the heart of Highfield, Harare’s historic suburb, stands Gwanzura Stadium, a once-proud monument to black excellence and football glory.
For decades, it was more than a ground. It was a cultural hub where football, music and national events took centre stage, and where teams like CAPS United built their legend.
The terraces once roared, the pitch once vibrated under the feet of heroes, and the structure itself stood tall as a beacon of pride for black craftsmanship during the colonial era.
But for nearly 10 years, Gwanzura has been silent.
Its stands have crumbled, its pitch has turned barren and life has drained from a place that once pulsed with song and football.
Driving along Main Street today, one sees the stadium’s concrete frame still jutting into the skyline, a stubborn reminder of what it once was.
Its walls have cracked and sections have collapsed.
Inside, the changing rooms and showers are broken, and the terraces are worn down to rubble.
Only the occasional social club or lower-league side dares to use it, because they have nowhere else to go.
Now, the Green Machine want to bring the old flame back.
CAPS United have secured a long lease from the Harare City Council and with it, the chance to bring Gwanzura back to life.
The club’s president, Farai Jere, is brimming with confidence. He does not see ruins, but possibility.
“We can renovate it to the standards that are required; installing bucket seats and making it the CAPS United home of football,” Jere says, his voice carrying the certainty of a man who believes this project could reshape his club’s future.
The stadium has been closed since 2015, when it was condemned as unfit for Premiership football.
Attempts to refurbish it in 2017 and 2020 collapsed before they began.
Each failure deepened the sense of loss.
But the idea of Gwanzura’s rebirth has sparked something inside CAPS United.
In a light jab at his old rivals Dynamos, Jere noted that sharing Rufaro with DeMbare has been more of a curse than a blessing.
Both giants are languishing in the relegation zone this season, and he believes the lack of a true home is part of the problem.
“If you look even in the yesteryears, we have never succeeded enough sharing the same home ground with Dynamos,” he says. “It’s a tradition. We need to establish our own home … When they come to us, it will be our home ground. The current situation has always been a problem. Maybe that’s why both teams are struggling. We have never done well.
“We are like twins, sitting next to each other in the relegation zone. Of course, it’s a news-making situation. But not that we are going to be relegated.”
CAPS United want to begin renovations as soon as the paperwork is finalised.
Jere stresses the importance of getting the process right.
“Let’s allow the processes to take their course. We believe in the right documentation; the correct resolutions. The resolutions are already in place, some of them. It’s a matter of implementation. So, we will be updating you as we go.”
Harare Mayor Jacob Mafume, who once dismissed the idea of leasing city stadiums, has changed his position.
With council coffers stretched thin and its facilities falling apart, he now backs handing Gwanzura to CAPS United.
For the supporters who grew up in the shadow of the stadium, the news feels like a homecoming.
Highfield resident and lifelong Makepekepe fan Francis Kaowa already pictures the rebirth.
“That was a great decision by the city council to lease Gwanzura to CAPS United because the club will upgrade the stadium to CAF standards. I just want to credit Mayor Mafume for leading such a decision. That’s the only way to develop our communities,” he says.
Another voice of approval comes from the terraces themselves.
CAPS United super fan Zisupa ReGreen instantly went down memory lane, recalling a defining survival match.
“I remember in 2008 when we were fighting relegation, we then beat Bosso 4-0 to survive on the last day,” he says, his memory pulling him straight into the Gwanzura stands.
“Playing at Gwanzura is a big advantage to CAPS United because the club has a huge following in the surrounding locations of Highfield, Glen Norah and Glen View.
“So, obviously, the stadium will be full during almost all matches since the team will be closer to our homes. It’s unlike having to travel to the National Sports Stadium or Rufaro, which our rivals dominate in terms of numbers. So, thumbs up to the council for considering this good move, which will also help the club save money and generate revenue.”
The City Council has also leased Dzivaresekwa Stadium to Herentals and Mabvuku Stadium to Premiership newcomers Scottland, hoping each club will breathe life into the concrete shells dotted around the capital.
“It’s very important that sporting infrastructure be married with teams, the fans and a sports economy of some sort, and that can only be done through infrastructure,” says Mafume.
“As you can see, we hosted the CAF junior qualifiers (COSAFA Under-17 Championship) and we are going to be hosting more tournaments using private stadiums and public stadiums.”
That COSAFA junior event took place at the Heart Stadium, owned by Walter Magaya’s Prophetic Healing and Deliverance Ministries; and at Norton’s Ngoni Stadium, which is leased to MWOS.
Both showed how private partnerships can succeed where councils have failed.
For Highfield, though, the story is more personal.
Gwanzura was built in the 1960s by brothers Eric and Fanuel Gwanzura as a gift to their community, a stone-and-steel expression of ambition and self-belief at a time when black Zimbabweans had little space to claim.
For decades, it served that purpose.
Then the silence fell.
Now, if CAPS United’s plans hold, the old ground could once again echo with chants, drum beats and the rhythm of football.
And for the supporters who walk past it every day, that would mean more than just a return to football.
It would mean a return of pride.
Tinaye Agere