DeMbare pull out of Confed Cup . . . ailing giants too weak, broke to compete

Eddie Chikamhi-Zimpapers Sports Hub

AILING Zimbabwe football giants, Dynamos, reeling from one of their worst seasons on and off the pitch, have concluded they are not fit to return to the continental game and have taken the drastic decision to withdraw from the 2025-26 CAF Confederation Cup, scheduled to start in August.

Broke Dynamos have hogged the limelight for the wrong reasons in the 14 Match-days of the Castle Lager Premier Soccer League in which fears of the country’s most successful club being relegated, for the first time since their 1963 formation, have grown with each passing week.

Yesterday Dynamos paid the ultimate prize for their failure to lure investors to cater for both their domestic and particularly their continental adventure.

Although the club’s chiefs did not give a breakdown of the Dynamos financial troubles, they did not hide that participating in this year’s CAF Confederation Cup had become too much for them.

The absence of a CAF certified stadium, which they could use to stage their home games and capitalise on gate revenue, has compounded Dynamos woes.

This is because the National Sports Stadium remains banned by CAF from hosting international matches and the giant facility is not looking to meet the deadline by which participating clubs must confirm their home venues with the Cairo-based continental body.

In a statement, the Dynamos executive committee led by chairman Moses Maunganidze also acknowledged that their squad was too thin for the demands of the African Safari.

The Dynamos management indicated that they did not want their team to just add the numbers in the competition, possibly after learning the hard way from their difficult campaign last season when they were eliminated in the preliminary rounds.

DeMbare, Champions League runners-up in 1998 and semi-finalists in 2008, had been absent from continental inter-club football for a decade when they bounced back last year.

“We regret to inform our stakeholders that Dynamos FC will not be participating in the 2025/26 CAF Confederation Cup,” read part of  the statement.

“After thorough evaluation, it has been determined that the club is not yet fully prepared to compete at continental level this year.

“While it has been a painstaking decision, we believe it is in the best interest of the team and everyone associated with Dynamos, to focus on strengthening its readiness for future competitions and ensure we would not participate in such tournaments just to make up numbers.

“We remain committed to our long-term development goals and appreciate your continued support as we work towards enhancing our club’s competitiveness on both the local and continental stage.

“We look forward to future opportunities to represent our country with honour and pride and we pledge to return to the continental stage even stronger,” Dynamos said.

Often slated for their lack of quality in playing personnel, Dynamos have had a tough campaign in the domestic league where they are trapped in the relation zone after 14 rounds of play.

Apparently, the financially troubled Zimbabwean giants are incapacitated to participate in the competition. Their problems have been compounded by the absence of a certified stadium in Zimbabwe with Rufaro and Barbourfields also long condemned by CAF.

The prolonged non-availability of the National Sports Stadium, which was banned by CAF for being sub-standard has not only affected Dynamos, but also the national team with the Warriors playing all their 2025 Africa Cup of Nations home qualifiers in other countries.

Reigning Premiership kings Simba Bhora are not spared either.

They will have to make their Champions League debut, home away from home.

Last year Dynamos had to travel to Gaborone and Francistown for their preliminary round assignments against ZESCO United of Zambia and Orapa of Botswana.

As ZIFA would be the first to testify, that arrangement often comes with a huge financial burden.

Having failed to advance to the group stage of the competition, Dynamos missed out on a US$400 000 pay cheque from CAF and could  only settle for the US$50 000 that comes with elimination in the preliminary rounds.

Club board chairman Bernard Marriot earlier confirmed that he had okayed the decision by Maunganidze’s executive committee’s decision to withdraw from the second-tier CAF inter-club competition.

“The executive will give the finer details, but without a CAF certified home ground in the country to use, we cannot afford the huge costs involved in participating in the Confederation Cup this year and we will not be able to make much from our home games.

“It will leave the club with an even bigger financial burden if one considers all the costs involved in hosting a CAF match in another country,’’ Marriot said.

Dynamos along with Castle Lager Premier Soccer League kings Simba Bhora had secured tickets to represent the country in the Confederation Cup and Champions League tournaments.

Then under the guidance of Lloyd Chigowe, DeMbare had successfully defended the Chibuku Super Cup title by competing back-to-back victories over Ngezi Platinum Stars last November to secure their passage to the Confederation Cup.

DeMbare’s withdrawal will open the doors for Ngezi Platinum Stars to take up the slot if they are willing, according to the CAF Confederation Cup engagement regulations.

The rules state in part that:

“iv. 2. If a federation is entitled to one club, the National Cup Winner will be engaged in the CAF Confederation Cup. If this National Cup Winner of a federation cannot be engaged to CAF Confederation Cup for various reasons, the Inter-clubs Committee reserves the right to accept the runner up of the cup by virtue of an application to be submitted in accordance with the regulations of the federation and /or the present regulations,” reads part of the regulations.