Fifa Covid-19 regulations to benefit PSL clubs

Tadious Manyepo Sports Reporter
ZIFA’s decision to provisionally set August/September as the period when the local Premiership football season may start would have presented a set of new problems for top-flight teams.

The 2020 season, which was initially scheduled to kick-off back in March, was put on hold due to the coronavirus outbreak.

The PSL had provisionally planned to get the season underway at the end of this month.

But, the extension of the national lockdown by a further two weeks.

The August-May period would have presented several local football clubs with a challenge.

Almost half of the teams in the PSL would have needed to re-negotiate with their players to renew contracts.

Most contracts for players at Highlanders, ZPC Kariba, Chicken Inn, Manica Diamonds, Herentals, Dynamos, Yadah and Triangle are running out in December.

It would have meant the players had a right to negotiate with any other club, in the final six months of their contracts, without any clearance from their teams.

But, FIFA have moved to ease pressure on the clubs as they have urged players, who were set for a season-long contract, to mutually agree to honour that time frame regardless of when the season gets underway.

Footballers Union of Zimbabwe president, Desmond Maringwa, yesterday said teams should not worry as his association will help their members understand their plight.

“We are aware that some players, who are our members, have just one-year contracts with the clubs who are currently paying them while they are not performing the duties they were signed for,” he said.

“Coronavirus is obviously a natural disturbance and neither the player nor the club should suffer.

“We are fully behind FIFA’s COVID-19 regulations.

“Players and clubs have to mutually agree to extend their relationship so that the player performs the duties for an initially agreed period.

“We will help both parties in case of any misunderstanding.”

It will, however, be up to the discretion of both parties to continue or terminate the relationship.

According to FIFA, all this has to be done out of a spirit of compromise that is mutually beneficial.