ZIFA could be handed a fine of up to US$1 million this
week, the heaviest financial punishment slapped on the country’s football
controlling body, should they be found to have breached the agreement to host
this year’s COSAFA Cup senior men’s tournament.
The association are set to face the COSAFA Disciplinary
Committee in Johannesburg, South Africa, on Thursday with judgment likely to be
handed down within 48 hours of the hearing.
This means, by Saturday, ZIFA would have known their fate
and the magnitude of the sanctions. However, ZIFA could avoid those sanctions
should they, before the hearing is held on Thursday, come up with an
alternative arrangement which guarantees the hosting of the region’s flagship
football tournament in this country this year.
COSAFA announced on Sunday ZIFA had been dragged before the
regional body’s disciplinary committee and the case will be heard on Thursday.
‘‘The venue for the 2019 edition of the COSAFA Senior
Tournament, scheduled from May 25 to June 8, remains undecided,’’ COSAFA said
in a statement.
‘‘The Zimbabwe Football Association is now in breach of
their Hosting Agreement, signed by ZIFA late in January 2019, and returned to
COSAFA.
‘‘Following a Board meeting convened on March 9 in
Zimbabwe, ZIFA reconfirmed their commitment to host the tournament in Zimbabwe,
irrespective of whether they received Government funding and guarantees.
‘‘ZIFA management committed to presenting to COSAFA written
confirmation of this decision no later than March 25.
‘‘Unfortunately, they failed to deliver on the nominated
deadline which has left COSAFA with no recourse other than to enforce their
Disciplinary procedures, which calls for ZIFA to attend a Disciplinary Hearing
scheduled for April 4 in Johannesburg.
‘‘The hearing will be handled by COSAFA’s independent
judicial body, and the outcome and punitive action will be handed down within
48 hours of the hearing.’’
The regional football body said the uncertainty over the
hosting of the tournament had come at a wrong time, given the importance which
the nations which have qualified for the 2019 AFCON tourney had attached to the
event, with all of them hoping to use it to prepare for the Nations Cup finals.
‘‘COSAFA is, particularly, disturbed by the management of
the process by ZIFA as 2019 is a critically pivotal year for football in the
Sub-Saharan region.
‘‘For the first time in 21 years, five COSAFA member
countries have qualified to participate in the continental show-piece,
including Zimbabwe’s celebrated Warriors.
‘‘The COSAFA Senior Tournament has consistently proved to
be a vibrant platform of opportunity for all competing countries, and in 2019
has become a key factor in pre-AFCON preparation for the successful qualifiers,
with Coaches and team Management planning to use the COSAFA tournament to fine
tune their training prior to the AFCON June 21 kick-off.
‘‘COSAFA remain hopeful that ZIFA will remedy the current
situation prior to the DC hearing on April 4.’’
Zimbabwe, South Africa, Madagascar, Angola and Namibia have
qualified for the 2019 AFCON finals which is in stark contrast to what was the
case, two years ago, when the Warriors were the only team from the region in
Gabon.
Youth, Sport, Arts and Recreation Minister, Kirsty
Coventry, revealed the country could not host the 2019 COSAFA Cup, which was
last staged here in 2009, because of the short notice available to host a
tournament of this nature.
The Herald can today reveal that the fine, for withdrawing
from hosting the tournament, ranges from US$500 000 to US$1 million depending
on the circumstances which the COSAFA disciplinary committee can establish
related to the case.
While the COSAFA disciplinary committee will use the
regional body’s disciplinary code and the COSAFA competition rules and
regulations to determine the case, what is critical here is that the regional
body can also use the CAF rules and regulations, related to such cases, as and
when they feel it’s appropriate.
Article 92 of the regulations of Africa Cup of Nations
deals with such cases and is clear in its pronouncements with a fine of US$100
000 for withdrawal notified two or more years prior to the final tournament, a
fine of US$300 000 for withdrawal notified less than two years before the date
of the final tournament.
There is also a fine of US$500 000 for withdrawal notified
within one year before the date of the final tournament, and a suspension at
the next edition of the tourney, while a US$1 million punishment is inflicted
on the association which would have withdrawn from hosting a tournament within
six months before the start of the tourney.
There is also a suspension, from the next two editions, of
the tournament. The sanctions were imposed on Morocco after the North
African nation pulled out of the hosting of the 2015 AFCON finals in the wake
of the Ebola outbreak in some part of West Africa.
The Morocco FA were slapped with a US$1 million fine by
CAF, who used the same regulations, which can be applied by COSAFA to deal with
similar cases.
Morocco were also banned from the 2017 and 2019 AFCON
tournaments.
They were also slapped with an US$8 million fine for
damages which CAF claimed to have suffered because of the decision by the Moroccans
to withdraw from the hosting of the 2015 AFCON tourney.
However, the Moroccans took their case to the Court of
Arbitration for Sport which overturned the ruling made by CAF and even reduced
the severity of the financial punishment from US$1 million to US$50 000.
CAS said the issue related to the damages, which were being
sought by CAF, should be examined by another body but Morocco were allowed to
return to the 2017 and 2019 AFCON tournaments. Herald
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