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Eddie Chikamhi Senior Sports Reporter
GIANTS Dynamos want football authorities to find sustainable models of collecting levies in the coming season to avoid bleeding clubs, which operate on shoestring budgets, to bankruptcy.
In his end-of-year statement yesterday, Dynamos chairman Moses Maunganidze said they have been battling to survive, with huge chunks of their matchday income getting swallowed by service providers and the levies to the PSL, ZIFA and SRC.
The clubs, especially those that depend on gate takings for survival, have found themselves in a vicious circle every year as they incur huge losses from the high costs of fulfilling the fixtures.
The PSL clubs are forking out more than they are earning and 2024 promises to be a difficult year for the majority of them.
Even those who have part sponsorship have been struggling with transport costs, accommodation, bonuses and allowances since they get little in additional funding from the gates.
Maunganidze dared the authorities to find ways to relieve the financial burden in the coming season, as clubs are subsidising hosting of match day events by meeting 100 percent of the cost and then compelled to share gross proceeds with statutory bodies like the SRC, ZIFA and, partly, PSL. Commenting on the challenges faced by his Glamour Boys, he said some of the levies were unfair and were making administration difficult.
“The match day levies that we had to contend with were no better than a millstone around the neck and the levies saw the club failing to service the barest minimum obligations as the club literally watched organisations spiriting away the little we would realise from gate proceeds and as a result disadvantaging our players in terms of additional revenue,” he said.
“It is disheartening to note that our local league and competitions have bled clubs dry through unfair levies which are deducted from gross gate takings with none of the statutory bodies caring to know how much expenses clubs incur before a game.
“We will strongly lobby for a fair model which benefits all stakeholders. Ordinarily any deduction should be done after direct match expenses for teams have been deducted. “It is, unfortunately, the opposite as organisations collect hard cash from clubs soon after the game. A new model for disbursement of gate receipts, informed by the needs of the clubs is imperative beginning 2024 season,” said Maunganidze.
Despite the challenges, he said the Glamour Boys punched above their weight and managed to win the Chibuku Super Cup for the first time while finishing third in the league race.
The Chibuku success handed them a ticket back to the CAF inter-club competitions, for the first time in 10 years.
“The club qualified for the CAF Inter-club competitions for the first time since 2014 and the club will be participating in the 2024/2025 CAF Confederation Cup and has been shortlisted for the elite Inaugural 2024/2025 CAF African League competition.
“All this phenomenal feat was made possible by the support the team got from the millions of passionate supporters who rooted for the team’s home and away games during a difficult season.
“The club shall continue to ensure that our fans have a big role to play within the structures of the Club more so for the season 2024 and beyond,” he said.
“The club would like to thank our valuable sponsors who stood by the club during high and low moments throughout 2023.
“Sakunda Holdings, Nyaradzo Funeral Assurance Services, Rouxgold Holdings, Hello Paisa, ZLG and the Ambassador of Pakistan who came in with the resources without which our campaign wouldn’t have been a success.
“We urge our current sponsors and others who may want to forge a strategic partnership with Dynamos to be part of the 2024 campaign,” said Maunganidze.
DeMbare are currently busy tying down players whose contracts have expired and have reportedly doled out in excess of US$80 000 to clear the signing-on backlog.
Online Reporter