Mahwindo fights for WAGS

Sports Reporter

SOCIALIATE Wanisani “Mahwindo’’ Mutandwa says she has launched a campaign with both ZIFA and the PSL for wives and girlfriends of the country’s football stars to be given special treatment to enter stadiums to watch domestic football matches.

The music promoter, who has started a football development project, says she has watched, from the sidelines, for a long time while the wives and girlfriends of the country’s stars are given a raw deal at entrance points into stadiums. “We want the players to do well when they run onto the pitch but we forget that there are some people who are playing a very big part to ensure that these players would be focused because, if these footballers have a troubled home, there is no way they can be focused on their jobs,’’ said Mutandwa.

“In Europe, we see the wives and girlfriends of sports stars being given special status because the professional set-up in those countries know the big role that these partners play in ensuring that the sports stars do well in whatever field they are in, be it football, cricket, golf or Formula One racing.

“I was watching golf on Sunday, it is not my favourite sport, but I watched it because someone told me it was a very important tournament, the British Open, and the first thing I noticed was that when the winner sunk the winning putt, the first people to get to him were his wife and little kid.

“The other spectators cheered it, you can tell that she had been moved to a special area so that she goes onto that green to celebrate with her husband but here in Zimbabwe that is taboo because I can tell you that woman, and her child, will actually be barred from even getting into that golf club.

Mutandwa said she was at Rufaro for the Harare Derby on Sunday and was unhappy with what she saw.

“I was in the company of someone who is a widow of a CAPS United legend, I thought she would be given some special treatment because of her family ties and even when I introduced her to the security personnel, they dismissed her and that’s disappointing,’’ she said.