Is Rwanda the right choice for Warriors?

Zifa s decision to stage their first home tie of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers against Nigeria in
Rwanda has not gone down well in local football circles.

The reality that the country presently has no certified stadia to host international matches
notwithstanding, the national football governing body was least expected to settle for a Central
African country for the home away from home fixture.

But that is precisely what the Normalisation Committee which is running Zimbabwe football after an
almost two-year FIFA ban did, ignoring venues in the vicinity such as South Africa, Botswana and
Zambia.

Lincoln Mutasa, the Zifa NC Chairman, explained to New Ziana that the choice of Rwanda made
financial and logistical sense as it would limit the Warriors' travel itinerary for the double-header.
The Warriors first take on Rwanda's Wasps on November 17 at Huye Stadium in the second city of
Butare before squaring off with the Super Eagles of Nigeria three days later on the same turf.
"We have minimied losses by opting to play and stay put in Rwanda to also reduce players' level of
fatigue," said Mutasa.

While most football analysts agreed with the Zifa move in as far as it will give the team adequate
rest in between the two games, some argued against the financial permutations pointing out that
Zifa would have made more money by adopting a neighbouring country as their host.
"It makes business sense to play in Zambia because we can easily travel to Zambia in thousands plus
those Zimbabweans who are already in Zambia plus Zambians will be also eager to watch Zimbabwe
playing," one Warriors supporter Milton Nyamweda complained.

A Zimbabwean national based in Rwanda, Chengetai Jinya, countered by saying the Warriors game
against Nigeria might still attract a sizeable crowd.

"There are not many Zimbabweans out here but there are thousands of Nigerian football lovers and
these can fill Rwanda's new stadium in the southern province. The only disadvantage is that they will
drown our voices and make Zimbabwe appear the away side, he said.

He joked that if the Warriors beat Rwanda they would afterwards need to be wary of a hostile
reception from Rwandese fans during the period awaiting the second fixture against Nigeria.
The flight to Kigali from Harare to reportedly takes only two hours, 51 minutes but is unlikely to
induce a big number of travelling fans rendering the game a potential financial suicide for Zifa.
Technical experts however tended to consider the benefits such a scenario could bring to coach
Brito’s men as they will avoid the pressure of playing before an impatient home crowd in their first
competitive international since February 2022.

They said the five days camp in Rwanda would help the Warriors acclimatise better than the visiting
Super Eagles.

What has overshadowed the complicated schedule is the Warriors shoddy preparations for the
World Cup qualifiers in which they are placed in Group C of the competition together with Rwanda,
Nigeria, South Africa, Lesotho and Benin.

Only one team from the group will join the other eight group winners for a ticket to the finals set for
US, Canada and Mexico.

In spite of the odds, Zifa missed two Fifa dates for friendly internationals and have so far sparred
against Namibia in low-key engagements which featured only locally-based players, most of whom
are expected to pave way for their foreign-based counterparts when crunch time comes.

On the plus side, the majority of the foreign-based contingent who include Marshall Munetsi and
Tino Kadewere (France), Teenage Hadebe (US), Marvelous Nakamba (England), Nyasha Mushekwi
(China) and Jordan Zemura (Italy) have been turning on impressive performances for their club sides.