THE Premier Soccer League is hopeful it will get the green light to kick-start the 2020 season in September, as the domestic game eagerly awaits a Zimbabwe Football Association (ZIFA) resolution this week, on the feasibility of playing this year.
Although there had been indications that the ZIFA board would make a decision on the matter yesterday, it emerged that the association’s leadership would now only meet on Thursday.
Instead, it was the Premier Soccer League (PSL)’s Sports Medicine and the ZIFA Competitions committees who met in the capital yesterday and came up with recommendations detailing the conditions and safety of football returning.
ZIFA communications and competitions manager Xolisani Gwesela told The Sunday Mail Sport that the recommendations of the two committees would now be submitted to the mother body’s president Felton Kamambo and his board.
The committees’ main brief was to look at how safe the game can return against the background of the need to help contain the spread of the coronavirus in the country and make the necessary recommendations.
Gwesela said ZIFA would continue to be guided by Government and health experts as well the Confederation of African Football in coming up with a decision that is suitable for Zimbabwe.
“As you are aware, these are just standing committees. They just recommend and ultimate decisions lie with the Exco (Executive Committee).
“A statement will be issued after the Exco meeting,” Gwesela.
The Sports Medicine Committee, led by Edward Chagonda, has set stringent conditions that include regular testing, social distancing, sanitisation and disinfection before football can return.
This year’s season was scheduled to start in March, but there has been no football in the country owing to the national lockdown that followed the outbreak of Covid-19, which has been effective for the last three months.
Although there had been suggestions in some quarters that the game might never be played at all this year, PSL chief executive officer Kennedy Ndebele said they were actually pressing for a September start-The Sunday Mail
