Rhino Cup Championship League (RCCL) has raised the country’s’ high after being
nominated and winning the BBC Green Sport Awards category.
It scooped the best grass roots organisation of the year.
The award follows the tireless efforts by RCCL as the amateur football league in rural Africa
for its work, in using football in wildlife conservation.
There has been a scourge of poaching that has endangered the rhino.
In an interview, the RCCL-Zimbabwe CEO Ndodana Masuku said the international
recognition of RCCL has given them impetus to do more in conservation and environment
management in saving the wildlife.
“The recognition by a world renowned organisation gives us an impetus to do more in
conservation and environment management and spread the message on environmental
protection and giving poaching the red card.
“This award puts RCCL on the map and enables the youths to push further to assist in
partaking in conservation and in saving the wildlife species especially rhinoceros which is
endangered. Sports with such a huge following should be a key enabler in changing the
scope,” he said.
Other Grassroots Organisation nominees were Vermont Green FC the American semi-
professional football club that were nominated for their work as a community-to make it
more environmentally friendly and Save the Waves Coalition, the international surfing
organisation which was nominated for trying to preserve at least 1,000 surf ecosystems by
2030.
RCCL is rooted in Tanzania, Namibia, Mozambique and Zimbabwe where it has transformed
the lives of the youths through sport by engaging communities that are dotted around the
Hwange National Park.
Girls soccer was launched in June creating employment for youths after being trained as
referees, coaches and in administration.
In Zimbabwe it runs a soccer league made up of 20 teams, in partnership with Wild and Free
Foundation (WWF) and Painted Dog Conservation (PDC), organisations that are into wildlife
conservation.
