PSL clubs in contracts fix

Ricky Zililo, Senior Sports Reporter
WHILE Premier Soccer League (PSL) is celebrating the return of activities, clubs in the board rooms are facing a dilemma of contracts that are due to expire at the end of the year.

For a second consecutive year, topflight clubs have failed to realise investments that they put on players they contracted and have been paying while inactive due to the Covid-19 lockdown.

The global pandemic has brought distress, not only to club sponsors who have to honour contractual obligations without getting returns, but to players as well, who have missed out on opportunities to attract foreign interest.

It is the contractual issue headache that clubs now have to battle.

Key stakeholders like Zifa and the Footballers Union of Zimbabwe (FUZ) are on record encouraging clubs to negotiate contracts with their players, adding that no one is to blame for lack of activity that was caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.

PSL clubs were given the green light to start training at the beginning of this week, with most saying they will resume activities today after conducting Covid-19 tests.

Football administrator Tavengwa Hara said while celebrating the return of activities, there’s a need for either Zifa or PSL to advise clubs so they plan accordingly.

“It’s good that we are now resuming activities, but what’s the plan? I mean what’s the plan with the core tournament which is the league that runs over 34 weeks. We have to engage the sponsors, present revised budgets for that even if it’s in the middle of the year. We also have to engage players and work on agreeing on bonuses,” said Hara.

“But the tricky part is on contracts. Most players now, especially those whose contracts are running out at the end of 2022, are free to sign pre-contracts with other clubs. There’s a risk of losing players without gaining reasonable service. Of course, we can’t blame anyone for Covid-19, but spare a thought for clubs that have religiously honoured their contractual obligations only to lose players at a critical time.

“What is clear is that our league will spill over and what will happen if these players refuse to extend contracts beyond December 2022 for those that are expiring? We’re in a fix as clubs,” he said.

At the beginning of the year, a number of clubs lost players as free agents after their contracts expired.

There were huge debates with clubs crying foul that they had invested in players and were now losing them without getting any value. — @ZililoR