THE recent qualification of the two national soccer teams the senior women and the senior men’s presents a chance for the Zimbabwe Football Association (ZIFA) to charm the nation with good corporate governance.
The Mighty Warriors (senior women’s team) have already made a landmark achievement by qualifying for the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, next year while the senior men’s side will feature at the African Nations Championship (CHAN) slated for Rwanda next year in January.
With the qualification of the two national teams, ZIFA have a chance to correct their soiled image by ensuring that they provide for the national teams.
The Mighty Warriors need to play several friendly matches in preparation for the global sports jamboree.
It’s the first time a soccer team has qualified for a global tournament in the history of Zimbabwe.
Affording the Mighty Warriors, a number of friendly matches with highly-ranked soccer playing nations will improve the players’ match fitness and tactics ahead of the global tournament.
Teams like Ghana, US, Germany or our neighbours across the Limpopo, South Africa, who qualified for the Olympics are good opposition to play international friendlies with.
There are a lot of gems in the Mighty Warriors team who need more tactical coaching to improve.
The highest achievement of the Mighty Warriors had been confined to the regional tournament COSAFA which they won in 2011 after beating Banyana Banyana of South Africa.
Qualification for the African Women Championship – the women’s version of the Africa Cup of Nations – had remained a pipedream for the women soccer administrators.
Now that the girls have qualified for the global showcase, it’s a big job for ZIFA to make sure that they harness resources in time.
The senior men’s soccer team have qualified for the CHAN tourney for the fourth time running.
CHAN is a continental tournament for locally-based players.
Zimbabwe’s highest achievement at CHAN was reaching the quarter finals stage.
After CHAN, half of the national team got an opportunity to play outside the country.
Goalkeeper George Chigova, Milton Ncube, Peter Moyo, Kuda Mahachi, Partson Jaure and Eric Chipeta, among others, joined South African teams after CHAN.
Next year CHAN presents another chance for players to be scouted by foreign clubs.
ZIFA will be under new leadership after the ouster of Cuthbert Dube and the new president faces an immediate task of ensuring that resources are mobilised in order for both teams to make it at CHAN and the Olympics.
The new Minister of Sport and Recreation Makhosini Hlongwane is energetic and needs a focused team to work with for the development of sport in the country.
It remains to be seen whether the new ZIFA president will deliver or will be another fellow who will lead football to more disaster.
So far controversial businessman Phillip Chiyangwa has thrown his hat into the ring.