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Dr Chiyangwa

Petros Kausiyo Deputy Sports Editor
ZIFA and COSAFA president Philip Chiyangwa is confident the regional body’s flagship tournament — the COSAFA Castle Cup — will return a stronger competition next year amid revelations of major moves being undertaken to ensure it evolves into a bigger event on the continent.

Although the COSAFA Castle Cup remains the biggest regional competition under all zones governed by the Confederation of African Football, the competition is still to receive the kind of recognition it needs from FIFA and CAF and has continued to be played outside of the two bodies’ calendars.

But it emerged that a breakthrough could be found soon following a visit by CAF president Ahmad to South Africa for the final of the 2017 COSAFA Castle Cup. Ahmad became the first CAF president in 20 years to watch a COSAFA Castle Cup final.

In discussions between Chiyangwa and Ahmad, the two leaders are understood to have explored ways in which the COSAFA Castle Cup format could be changed. Southern Africa is not only the biggest zone in terms of size under CAF but it is also the most active.

Chiyangwa, who is in Rabat, Morocco, for the CAF African Football symposium, confirmed that some overtures had been made with the continental body to help strengthen the profile of the COSAFA Castle Cup.

“We are looking at ways to make the COSAFA Cup tournaments better and this is one of the issues that we will try to tackle during the football symposium which will discuss all the competitions in African Football including the AFCON itself.

“We are also going to have a follow-up on the MOU that we as COSAFA signed with CECAFA and the North Zone which looks at ways of jointly developing football in our various zones,’’ Chiyangwa said.

Chiyangwa is also deputy to Nigerian Football Association president Amaju Pinnick on CAF’s powerful organising committee for the African Cup of Nations.

The ZIFA president is optimistic that the Memorandum of Understanding which they entered into with CECAFA and the North Zone will also help revive such competitions like the CECAFA Cup.

Chiyangwa represented COSAFA in signing the memorandum while Mutasim Gafar stood in for CECAFA and the North Zone had Jary Wadie appending his signature.

“COSAFA, CECAFA, and North Zone (hereinafter known as the Zones) hereby agree to cooperate in order to promote the development of football in Southern, Eastern and Northern Africa. “To strengthen ties between the zones in all matters related to football development.

“To develop football competitions within the zones, for the zones and or between the zones,’’ reads part of the memorandum’’. It is also understood that COSAFA could play a pivotal role in helping CECAFA revive their Challenge Cup tournament.

In the agreement, the three zones also outlined the types of co operation they are looking at which include:

“The parties agree that their co-operation will include but not to be limited to the following areas:

l Promotion of football across the zones

l The development of women football

l Development of youth football across the zones

l Development of competition within the individual zones

l The development of competition between the zones at club, women, youth and national levels

l The co-operation in all matters related to the marketing, sponsorship, fundraising, merchandising, TV rights and outsourcing of assets

l The co-operation in infrastructure development

l The exchange of ideas in football related matters

l The co-operation between the members’ technical departments

“Except for these provisions set forth explicitly in this document, any conditions related to implementing the activities of referred to in this memorandum will be separately negotiated between the zones and only concerned third parties and agreed to in written document in advance of commencing the activities,’’ the memorandum reads.

It is also envisaged that the memorandum will come into force “on the date that the governing bodies of the zones provide their formal consent and will remain in effect for a period of two years after which it may be renewed’’.

“Continuation of the implementation of the memorandum for a period of one year beyond the above mentioned Article implies renewal of the memorandum. “The provision of the memorandum may be amended at any time by mutual consent in writing by the zones,’’ the document reads.

With a host of football experts and various stakeholders including those from FIFA and UEFA converging in Rabat for the CAF symposium, Chiyangwa and his counterparts from the other regions should not be short of ideas and recommendations on ensuring that such competitions like the COSAFA Castle Cup remain relevant to the development of the game on the continent.

FIFA president Gianni Infantino and the world body’s secretary-general Fatma Samoura will be in Rabat for the Symposium which will be followed by a CAF executive committee indaba.