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Return to football season indefinite

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THE pronouncement by the Zimbabwe Football Association (ZIFA) that their season is likely to start either in August or September might be illusory.

The shelving of sporting activities because of COVID-19 has affected virtually the whole world. 

Football, being arguably the most popular sport in the world, has created some problems. 

This includes the money it generates and its popularity among spectators used to a dosage of the games week-in and week-out. 

This has seen some associations toying with the idea of having the games played even before COVID-19 is tamed.

Leagues in Germany, Italy, Spain and England have thrown caution to the wind. And to circumvent the COVID-19 menace they have proposed playing their games in empty stadiums.

May be it is this imminent return to action of the big leagues that might have tempted ZIFA to hazard an opening time for their season.

However, there is a world of difference between our own football league and those in Europe and England. 

For instance, English Premier League (EPL) players will be tested twice a week for the virus by their clubs.

Remember, our own business cried out loudly when they were asked to test their employees as a condition to allowing them at work.

Most said they could not afford.

Spare a thought for our football clubs.

They rely on support from the corporate world to be functional.

And it looks like some of their sponsors are no longer keen to continue pouring their cash into a dormant league.

Thus, to expect our clubs to be able to be testing their pool of players, trainers and coaches twice a week, let alone once, is expecting too much. 

Moreover our football clubs depend heavily on gate takings.

With spectators shut out, the major lifeline of our clubs would have been cut. Big league clubs can survive without gate takings because they benefit tremendously from TV rights.

This is unheard of with our clubs.

After all, most of our clubs, including giants like Dynamos who claim to have over seven million supporters, do not have their own pitches.

If they had, they would be able to disinfect their grounds.

This won’t be effective with pitches shared with others not bound by similar conditions.

Big leagues have a number of their own pitches at their training centres.

This allows players to train on their own at any section of one of the pitches before they are tested.

This is a far cry for a team like our beloved Dynamos which does not even have a club house.

Obviously a club house, if well managed, can be used to generate some cash. The majority of our players do not have private means of transport.

To get to their training centres and back  home, most have to use public transport.

This defeats the whole purpose of making sure our players are safe from possible infection. All we are saying is, ZIFA do not have the capacity to ensure the safety of players as long as this raging menace has not yet been tamed.

There is either of two conditions which must prevail first before our football season can resume. A prolonged period of no new COVID-19 infections after extensive testing is a prerequisite.

Alternatively, a vaccine must have been found before our football season can start.

We don’t know when either of the two will happen.

Thus, to tell our football lovers with certainty that our season will start in August or September is putting the cart before the horse. 

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