By David Gold
March 23 – Zimbabwean team FC Platinum (pictured) have been ordered by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) to play a Champions League game against Sudanese side El Merreikh in the country’s capital Harare, rather than their home town of Zvishavane.
Zvishavane is approximately 400 kilometres from Harare, but the poor infrastructure in the mining town means Platinum will face their Sudanese opponents at the Rufaro Stadium in the capital.
They had hoped to stage the match at their CAF approved Mandava stadium, but CAF confirmed to insideworldfootball that, after examining the case, a lack of hotels and transportation issues led them to move the match.
They cited Article 5 of their statutes for Champions League games, which requires the host association, in this case the Zimbabwean Football Association (ZIFA), to provide suitable hotel accommodation as well as air transport for the Sudanese team from Harare to Zvishavane and back because of the distance between the two venues.
According to New Zimbabwe, a weekly Zimbabwean newspaper published in the United Kingdom, ZIFA chief executive Jonathan Mashingaidze claimed to have secured a plane for the El Merreikh players and officials, but only between Zvishavane and Masvingo, some 85km from Zvishavane and where the hotels are located.
ZIFA gave up on their hopes of being able to stage the game in Zvishavane yesterday and in a statement they said: “ZIFA hereby confirms that the match…will now take place at Rufaro Stadium in Harare despite our spirited efforts to have the match in question played at Mandava Stadium.”
The first leg of the first round clash between the two sides is due to take place tomorrow.
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