Story by Anashe Murombedzi
THE government has reassured the nation that the National Sports Stadium will be refurbished to host international matches by April next year.
The football family has been left disappointed after it emerged that the Warriors will host their 2026 World Cup Qualifier against Nigeria in Rwanda with the National Sports Stadium having failed to meet international standards.
The Ministry of Sport, Arts, Recreation and Culture, Honourable Kirsty Coventry is however treating the issue as a matter of urgency with a strategic plan to revamp the National Sports Stadium now in place to ensure that Zimbabwe hosts international matches in the country by April next year.
“We are all disappointed, but it is a part of the lifting of the suspension coming back and making sure we are doing things correctly we don’t want to take shortcuts; we don’t want to find ourselves putting a bandage or a plaster on a wound and I’m talking about the National Sports Stadium. In three months, we need to fix it again so we have not been rushing on that but I believe we have a good plan in place. The bucket seats are in the process of being procured and our goal is to try and make sure that our second game in April everything will be in place,” she said.
It emerged from the ministry’s engagement that other selected sporting facilities that need immediate attention will be spruced up, while a policy on sexual harassment of female athletes is also being worked on.
Meanwhile, Zimbabwe’s 2026 World Cup qualifiers with an away tie to Rwanda on the 15th of this month before hosting Nigeria in the same country on the 19th.
