The Sunday Mail
MOST sports fans across the continent are currently bingeing on the spectacle that is the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON), which began in the West African country of Côte d’Ivoire on January 13.
The tournament has been quite entertaining thus far.
And this year’s edition of the now-biennial continental sporting extravaganza has been made all the more glamorous by the majestic and eye-catching modern venues that are hosting the games.
Notably, the 24 teams at AFCON are competing at six venues spread across five cities — Yamoussoukro, Bouake, Korhogo, San Pedro and, of course, the West African country’s economic capital, Abidjan.
It is heartening to see that these stadiums are like any other that can be found in the developed world, or even better.
The crown jewel is undoubtedly the 60 000-seater Alassane Ouattara Stadium, which was designed by the Beijing Institute of Architectural Design and built by the Beijing Construction Engineering Group.
As is the case elsewhere on the continent, China has been playing a pivotal role in putting up these magnificent facilities.
Beyond the six stadiums, the Ivorians have also invested in training facilities and villas that are being used by the teams during the tournament.
Africa has indeed come of age, thanks in no small part to the Confederation of African Football (CAF)’s strong stance to give hosting rights to only those countries that commit to using modern stadiums.
Sadly, for Zimbabwe, the state and condition of local sporting facilities couldn’t be starker.
Sooner, rather than later, the parlous state of our stadiums will come back to haunt us, if corrective measures are not expeditiously taken as promised.
As highlighted elsewhere in this publication, the senior national football team, the Warriors, might once again face the ignominy of playing their home games for the FIFA 2026 World Cup qualifiers in a foreign country.
Zimbabwe have already played two of their group assignments against Rwanda and Nigeria in the Rwandan city of Huye.
Likewise, Premier Soccer League champions Ngezi Platinum Stars and Chibuku Super Cup winners Dynamos could also suffer the same fate when they begin their CAF Champions League and Confederation Cup assignments, respectively.
This simply means the National Sports Stadium must be refurbished to meet the CAF requirements before the resumption of World Cup qualifiers in June.
What is even more worrying is that CAF have condemned Rufaro Stadium, which would have been the ideal alternative venue.
In fact, the continental body has recommended that the Mbare-based stadium, which was built in 1963, be demolished and a new modern structure be constructed in its place.
This is hardly surprising.
The 61-year-old facility has become so decrepit that with the benefit of hindsight, Harare City Council, which owns the facility, should have taken the offer made by Sakunda Holdings to build a state-of-the-art stadium and spruce up the environs in Harare’s oldest suburb.
They could have at least used the designs, which they were given free of charge by the company, for their own refurbishment.
But, again, this shows the ineptitude and myopia of those running our local authorities, who neither have the vision nor capacity to modernise our cities.
While some might be persuaded to believe that building modern stadiums is not a priority, particularly at a time when the country is facing competing needs for scarce resources from other sectors, this cannot be further from the truth.
Sport, football in particular, has become a money-spinning business the world over, helping to drive economies and sustain livelihoods.
Professionalising sport is, therefore, one of the surest ways of ensuring that athletes can express their talent and earn a living.
But this cannot be possible without investing in suitable facilities.
And, by its very nature, sport can help distract youths away from delinquent behaviour.
In any case, our national vision, which is premised on establishing a modern, prosperous and highly industrialised state where people enjoy high standards of living, similarly enjoins us to invest in modern facilities.
In addition to prodding local authorities, such as the Harare City Council, to wake up from their slumber and do the needful by modernising sporting facilities.
The corporate sector also needs to step up to the plate by exploring public-private partnerships to rehabilitate our infrastructure to standards set by international federations like FIFA, CAF, World Athletics and the International Hockey Federation, among others.
President Mnangagwa has already made it clear that, in our journey to prosperity, we should leave no one and no place behind.
As it stands, our athletes are being left behind by being denied the world-class facilities to help them thrive.
The time to invest in sport is now.
