THE Mighty Warriors have made the country proud by qualifying for not only the 2016 Rio Olympic Games, but also for the 2016 Africa Women’s Championships.
INSIDESPORT WITH MICHAEL KARIATI
But sadly, the women’s soccer team continues to be treated as a second-rate national team despite their victory.
In spite of having continuously proved their mettle, the women’s soccer team is still housed at the dilapidated Zifa Village and are being served poor food while the men’s team would be accommodated at three or four-star hotels. Ironically, in terms of success, the Mighty Warriors have done far much better.
Even in terms of allowances, the Mighty Warriors are still being rewarded poorly — about $100 each for a win while the Warriors are made to share huge gate takings on top of other rewards from sponsors.
The difference in remuneration is just too much. While the Warriors received around $2 000 each for their win over Swaziland — which was paid soon after the game — the Mighty Warriors are still struggling to get the $100 each they were offered for beating Zambia and qualifying for the African football rendezvous.
This lack of respect for the Mighty Warriors is despite the fact that women have been the most successful sportspersons in Zimbabwean history.
Talk of the 1980 national women’s hockey team — popularly known as the Golden Girls — Kirsty Coventry, Helen Costa Sinclair, Cara Black, and the Mighty Warriors — who are the second team after the hockey girls to take part in the Olympics.
- Chamisa under fire over US$120K donation
- Mavhunga puts DeMbare into Chibuku quarterfinals
- Pension funds bet on Cabora Bassa oilfields
- Councils defy govt fire tender directive
Keep Reading
In fact, the Mighty Warriors qualified for the Olympics while the hockey team was in Moscow by invitation after a number of countries boycotted the Games.
Zifa president Phillip Chiyangwa should be applauded for persuading the government to reward the Mighty Warriors with housing stands for qualifying for the 2016 Africa Women’s Championships. But how are the Mighty Warriors going to build houses at these stands when they are being paid a paltry $100 or less for a win?
The stands are supposed to be a lifetime honour for them. But won’t the players be forced to sell their lifetime rewards after failing to secure funds to undertake construction? Right now Zifa is busy organising friendly matches for the Warriors ahead of their two Africa Cup of Nations qualifiers against Malawi and Guinea. Nothing, however, is being done about the Mighty Warriors’ preparations, despite that they have a more daunting task at the Rio Olympics.
The Mighty Warriors are in the toughest group at the global sporting festival where they have been drawn alongside two-time World Cup winners — Germany, Australia and Canada — with the top two teams qualifying for the quarter finals.
It is a fact that the Mighty Warriors are not in the same league with teams in their group, but the Zimbabweans need to put up a fight which the whole world will talk about for years to come, and that demands good preparations.
Even more disturbing is the fact that there is always other football games being played elsewhere when the Mighty Warriors are in action at home. These matches turn out to be counter attractions to the Mighty Warriors, resulting in low attendance.
This, however, does not happen when the Warriors are at home, as Premier Soccer League matches are cancelled to give them maximum exposure.
When Tabetha Kanengoni was deputy minister of Sport, she raised the issue of double fixtures with Zifa, but that fell on deaf ears. Zifa should cancel PSL matches when the Mighty Warriors have a home international engagement. Simple.
Chiyangwa said he was negotiating with a corporate sponsor for the Warriors but there was no mention of the Mighty Warriors’ sponsorship.
The Zifa boss should be reminded that there are too many companies out there willing to bankroll the Mighty Warriors, but the problem is that they have not been approached as Zifa clearly have a bias towards the Warriors.
Now that those at the national football federation have come to their senses — that it is only corporate sponsorship that guarantees a future — it is also time that they came to their senses and realised that the Mighty Warriors also need a piece of the cake that the sponsors are dishing out.
There are four months left before the Mighty Warriors embark on their Olympic Games journey, therfore, now is the time for Zifa to show their seriousness towards this team. This is the time for the football authorities to organise serious friendly matches for the Mighty Warriors, even if it means sacrificing finances for them to play the best Africa has to offer, like Nigeria, Ghana and the Equatorial Guinea.
Maybe, Zifa has too much on its plate that it has no time for the Mighty Warriors. In that case, maybe those at 53 Livingstone Avenue should let the women handle their own affairs by handing the Mighty Warriors over to the Zimbabwe Women’s Football Association.
However, whatever the case is, on the strength of what they have done, the Mighty Warriors demand respect. Give them equal treatment to that of the Warriors.
For comments, views and suggestions, email [email protected], or WhatsApp on 077 3 266 779.
