Premier Soccer League teams will soon descend on the high density suburbs of High-Glen for their matches amid revelations that the Harare City Council has approved the setting up of a state of the art stadium in the South Western part of the city.

Currently, the City Council has three popular stadia in Dzivarasekwa, Gwanzura and Rufaro. The lastest project which has already started will see them having four well known stadia under their belt.

Speaking via the council’s official Facebook page, Housing Director Mr Addmore Nhekairo confirmed the latest development saying the demands of the City have prompted them to embark on such an ambitious project.

“Currently we have five stadia that we have as a city but looking at the demands that the City requires, we have decided as a city to come up with a new state of the art stadium which will be located to the south of High Glen close to the round about,” said Nhekairo.

Nhekairo said the project will take three to maximum of four years to be completed, and to achieve that they have broken down the whole project into small and achievable goals.

“The intention for this year is to ensure that up to design level we would have done that. It is our hope that It is going to be a three, maximum four year project and this is what we are going to set up,” he said.

To kick start the project the council have since set aside US$1.4 million.

Nhekairo also took time to answer to the issue of stadia like Rufaro, Gwanzura and Dzivarasekwa which have lost the expected FIFA club licensing standards.

Gwanzura and Dzivarasekwa having of late condemned for failing to meet the international basic standards under club licensing.

To that, Nhekairo said the local council is concerned by the down time experienced by some of these stadiums.

He said plans are underway to revive the dilapidated stadia, primarily Gwanzura and Dzivarasekwa.

Nhekairo also added that the council intends to improve the playing turf for the stadia in question.

“What we intends to do as a city is we want to lay a new playing surface. But before we do that we also want to ensure that the drainage system is done properly so that we won’t have issues of water logging.”

“Given the level of works that we want to do, we are in the gandchat that we finalised with housing, Harare water a nd department of works by August 2019 that when we would have completed all that is required for Gwanzura stadium.”

Sports Brief