Due to the poor condition of Zambia’s stadiums, the Football Association of Zambia has had to resort to venues outside of the country for Chipolopolo’s next friendly matches ahead of the 2024 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.
The FAZ president, Andrew Kamanga, has revealed this in his latest weekly column, dubbed President’s Corner, on the association’s official Facebook page.
On November 15th next month, the Chipolopolo will begin their 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers campaign against Congo Brazzaville before facing Niger three days later.
Their match against Congo is supposed to be played on home soil, but the country’s stadiums were declared unfit to host international matches.
Both the Levy Mwanawasa and Heroes National Stadiums have been declared unfit.
However, the government has closed the Levy Mwanawansa stadium for renovations, but the time frame for the completion of the works is unknown.
The pitch and running track at the stadium are expected to be ripped out and replaced.
Zambian stadiums can’t host a FIFA-sanctioned match
Kamanga said the lack of a stadium to host a FIFA-sanctioned match in the country has made the association consider other venues for Chipolopolo’s international friendly matches this month.
“We have taken note of the cry for fans to watch these friendly matches on home soil, but regrettably, our current stadium situation makes it hard to host a FIFA-sanctioned match,” he wrote.
“Given the limited time to regroup, it becomes logical to settle for a place that is easily accessible to players travelling from Europe and other regions,” he stated.
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Meanwhile, Chipolopolo coach Avram Grant has summoned 25 players for two international friendly matches against Uganda and Egypt on October 12 and 17, respectively.
The local-based Chipolopolo players, who are expected to be joined by the foreign-based stars, left the country for the United Arab Emirates yesterday.
