Online Reporter
Eddie Chikamhi
Zimpapers Sports Hub
ZIFA and the Government say they want to use the COSAFA Under-17 championship to lay the foundation for the country’s ambition to host bigger football tournaments such as the Africa Cup of Nations and the African Nations Championships in the near future.
Addressing the media in Harare yesterday ahead of the regional youth football tournament, which Zimbabwe is hosting for the first time, Sports and Recreation Commission director-general, Eltah Nengomasha, revealed the government’s vision under the Second Republic, which comes the country also successfully staged the COSAFA edition of the CAF Under-15 African schools Football Championship in 2023.
Zimbabwe is set to welcome visiting teams from 11 countries in the region for the TotalEnergies CAF Under-17 Africa Cup of Nations 2026/COSAFA Qualifiers kick off in Harare tomorrow and end on September 20.
The games will be played at The Heart Stadium in Waterfalls and Ngoni in Norton, with Video Assistant Referee technology to be used in the country for the first time.
Nengomasha, who was flanked by the COSAFA executive director Sue Destombes, ZIFA president Nqobile Magwizi, COSAFA referees manager Felix Tangawarima and the Local Organising Committee chairperson Thomas Marambanyika, said they are looking to roll out a flawless event and set the stage to bidding for bigger events.
“We will deliver a successful event. As the SRC, we are very mindful of the hard work and commitment exuded in ensuring that Zimbabwe has a successful Under-17 tournament.
“Need I say that this is the second time that Zimbabwe has hosted a football event post our transition phase. The first tournament was the African Schools Football Championship, which was also a COSAFA qualifier for the Under-15s and I’m happy that we are now onto the Under-17 tournament.
“I know Mr Magwizi has spoken about (hosting) CHAN but when you look into our vision 2030, beyond 2030, there’s nothing that stops Zimbabwe from hosting the next AFCON.
“As a country, we are more than able to collectively bid to host these events,” said Nengomasha.
But there have been issues to do with lack of infrastructure for a long time, which have resulted in Zimbabwe playing international matches on adopted home venues outside the country.
Zimbabwe currently does not have a stadium that meets the CAF requirements for top international matches.
However, Nengomasha indicated that the government was working flat-out to address the concerns and make bidding a possibility.
“We are mindful of the things that need to be addressed; issues of infrastructure, and I’m very confident that there’s a good trajectory in that road.
“So, let it be known soon within the circles of football that Zimbabwe will at some point come knocking and beating and claim its rightful position, so that at some point in the history of Southern Africa, Zimbabwe will host the AFCON.
“Hosting is very important. It’s very important to the country, and I’m glad that other ministries have come on board, Ministry of Home Affairs, Ministry of Tourism, Ministry of Information, and other ministries… and I’m glad that we’ve adopted the destination Zimbabwe in terms of sport, which also then brings a lot of investments to the country.
“I’m happy that the ZIFA executive has understood that football is business, and football can play and has a meaningful role in developing the economy in Zimbabwe,” said Nengomasha.
The COSAFA Under-17 Championship will feature hosts Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Comoros, Eswatini, Madagascar, Malawi, Angola, Botswana, Mauritius, Lesotho and regional powerhouses Zambia and South Africa, who will face off in Group B.
Destombes said the tournament is important since it holds the key to next year’s Under-17 AFCON and FIFA World Cup youth tournaments.
“FIFA last year designed it to make the Under-17 boys category an annual World Cup. So annually now, including last year 2024, we have a qualifier that will send three teams from the Southern African Zone to the Under-17 AFCON, which will be in March, April next year.
“And from there, they go on to the World Cup. So, this is a really, really important event, competition,” said Destombes.
She also applauded the Local Organising Committee for putting the tournament together.
“Twelve teams of an average of 30 people per team, that’s 360 people coming in from 11 different countries. Plus, we’ve got referees, a team of around 40.
“We’ve got our delegation here. So, this is a sizable event to put together. And we couldn’t do it without our partners,” she said.
“We’re playing at Heart Stadium, and the Ngoni Stadium in Norton and both of those have been very supportive in terms of making their stadiums available.
“And very good facilities. Next time we come, I’m sure that we’re going to have the National Sports Stadium.
“But in the meantime, and actually these two stadiums are just ideal for this age group. One doesn’t also want to go to a 40 000-seater where the spectators are going to get a little lost.
“So, we’re very happy with all of the arrangements thus far. We’re looking forward to a very good tournament, said Destombes.
Marambanyika, whose LOC were commended for putting a good shift so far, added that everything was in place for a successful event.
He revealed group games will be free of charge to the supporters.
“We have prepared very well to ensure that we receive our visitors from 11 countries that are coming to participate. Most of our games are free of charge.
“So, those who come in to watch our games will get our complimentary tickets so that we also have some statistics in terms of the numbers who are going to participate in our stadium.
“Then, of course, we may charge from the semi-final to the final a small fee, which will be determined at some point and we will use the ticketing system for people to participate in those games,” said Marambanyika.
The tournament will also leave a footmark with the legacy training programmes currently underway in which various technical officials who include referees, coaches and general coordinators are undergoing training.
“This tournament has unlocked some opportunities for us as Zimbabwean football. And specifically for this one, we have got three key legacy programs that are being run also during this tournament.
“We have got the referees training workshop, which has been underway, I think, from the 5th of September. And you find that it also unlocked another new opportunity in Zimbabwe when it comes to the use of VAR.
“I think most people have seen that it’s more in other countries, but here we have not been using it much. But that is a stepping stone in terms of the training that is required so that we capacitate our referees with modern techniques.
“It’s an initiative that we agreed as ZIFA to take up and I know we are doing very well on that. Then we also have the technical group, which is even underway today at one of the local hotels,” said Marambanyika.
