HARARE – Zimbabwe’s national football team will receive US$1 million from the government to cover expenses during the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations finals in Morocco, finance minister Mthuli Ncube announced on Thursday.
Ncube said the money was over and above the ZiG 888.4 million allocated to the ministry of sports, recreation, arts and culture in his national budget.
The finance minister said ZiG 189 million (about US$7,4 million) in the sports ministry’s budget was “specifically meant to complete the renovations of the National Sports Stadium to make it usable during the year 2025.”
“The government has also made a provision of US$1 million for the preparations and participation of the Zimbabwe national football team, the Warriors, for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations set for December 2025 in Morocco,” Ncube told MPs.
Zimbabwe qualified for the finals while playing all of its home matches in foreign countries after FIFA condemned local stadiums for failing to meet international standards.
FIFA condemned all stadiums in Zimbabwe in November 21 and gave directions on renovations that the Zimbabwe Football Association had to carry out.
ZIFA failed to do the work at both the National Sports Stadium and Barbourfields Stadium in Bulawayo, and the country failed a subsequent inspection, ensuring that the last home match played in the country by the Warriors was the 1-1 draw with Ethiopia on November 14, 2021, in a World Cup qualifier.
Since then, the government which owns the National Sports Stadium and the City of Bulawayo which owns Barbourfields have made repeated pledges to bring the venues up to FIFA standards but deadlines have been missed.
The work includes relaying the pitch, installing bucket seats, renovations to dressing rooms, upgrading the media centre, provision of fast speed internet services as well security upgrades, mainly the installation of modern electronic turnstiles and automated systems and a venue operations centre with a good overview of the stadium equipped with CCTV monitors.
