Chronicle Editor
After a landslide victory, businessman and philanthropist Nqobile Magwizi was recently elected as the new Zimbabwe Football Association (ZIFA) president. The resounding win saw 80% (61 out of the 77 votes) cast in favour of Magziwi.
Despite humiliating his opponents for ZIFA presidency, the election in Harare was overshadowed by allegations of impropriety during the course of the build-up, namely vote-buying. The question being asked here is, what does Nqobile Magwizi’s FA election result mean for Zimbabwe football?
Let’s dive straight in to find out.
Are Zimbabwe in AFOCN 2025?
Yes. Zimbabwe qualified for the group stages of AFCON 2025, meaning you will soon be able to watch them in action and bet on them.
The is legally permitted. This trusted brand is a fully licensed and regulated online sportsbook that will have a wide range of betting markets with highly competitive odds for what will be the world’s biggest international football competition when it gets underway in December.
What does Nqobile Magwizi’s FA election result mean for Zimbabwe football?
Claims of vote-buying raised by challengers marred Nqobile Magwizi’s election victory. He secured 77 votes, while Philemon Machana, his closest rival, secured only six.
Other candidates who also ran for ZIFA presidency included Makwinji Soma Phiri (receiving 0 votes), Marshall Gore (1 vote), and Twine Phiri (4).
Additionally, five ballots were discredited. ZIFA Normalisation Committee chairman Lincoln Mutasa eventually reduced the final voter count to 77 delegates because Weson Jemwa (one of the councillors) was caught taking a snap of his voting slip, which caused him to be disqualified immediately.
Mutasa declared his vote invalid but didn’t exclude Jemwa from participating in other polls.
The new president of football in Zimbabwe now faces an uphill challenge of reforming and stabilising a sports association that has been tainted in recent years with misconduct, corruption, mismanagement of funds, and boardroom scuffles.
The recent vote-buying concerns in the run-up and disqualified councillor votes have cast another shadow over what was a huge opportunity for them to reform the association after its one-year suspension.
In 2015, FIFA banned the Zimbabwe men’s national football team, aka The Warriors, from participating in the 2018 FIFA World Cup because of a debt to former coach José Claudinei that hadn’t been paid.
The Warriors were suspended again on March 1, 2022, from international sports (along with Kenya) due to government interference. In early November 2021, Zimbabwe and Kenya dissolved their respective football association federations and replaced them with government officials.
FIFA authorised the suspension indefinitely at the end of the same month (March 31) and was to stand until both nations could meet FIFA demands.
In what otherwise could have been the perfect stage for restoring ZIFA’s credibility, the new president, Magwizi, now faces an immense challenge to turn things around. The integrity of the association in Zimbabwe is in urgent need of restoration.
What this means for football in Zimbabwe and their participation in international competitions remains to be seen. We will have to wait and see how things unfold during the coming months.
What group are Zimbabwe in?
Zimbabwe have been drawn in group B along with South Africa, Egypt and Angola in what many have said is one of the toughest groups. Group C, which features Nigeria, Tanzania, Tunisia, and Uganda, is another difficult group.
Who are the favourites to win AFCON 2025, and do Zimbabwe stand a chance of winning?
Zimbabwe are currently ranked at #121 on the official FIFA men’s world rankings and are currently one of the least favourite nations to come out on top based on the latest odds on trusted sites like 10bet.
They are currently priced at around 251.00 (250/1) to win, along with Sudan. These two teams are both the joint-second LEAST odds-on favourites to win, ahead of rock-bottom favourites Botswana at 501.00 (500/1).
As it stands, the top three favourites with the best chance of lifting the cup this year are the following teams:
- Bet type: AFCON 2025 outright winner. Team. Morocco (odds-on favourites to win). Odds: 3.75 (decimal), 11/4 (fractional). Implied probability rate (IPR): 26.70%
- Bet type: AFCON 2025 outright winner. Team. Algeria (joint-second odds-on favourites to win). Odds: 7.00 (decimal), 6/1 (fractional). IPR: 14.30%
- Bet type: AFCON 2025 outright winner. Team. Egypt (joint-second odds-on favourites to win). Odds: 7.00 (decimal), 6/1 (fractional). IPR: 14.30%
- Bet type: AFCON 2025 outright winner. Team. Senegal (third odds-on favourites to win). Odds: 7.50 (decimal), 13/2 (fractional). IPR: 13.30%
Final thoughts
Zimbabwe’s Football Association has a challenging time ahead, and they must avoid any controversies during if they are to restore any credibility in how they run things. The Warriors will be hoping to finish at least second in the group, but the chances of this happening are also very slim.
The previous Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) tournaments took place in January and February, but rescheduling will see AFCON 2025 beginning later in the year, starting on December 21 and running until January 18, 2026.
Online Reporter