Zambia’s two largest stadiums, the National Heroes Stadium and the Levy Mwanawansa Stadium, were barred by CAF from hosting international matches due to their poor state.
This meant the Chipolopolo would have to play next month’s 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers outside the country.
The Football Association of Zambia (FAZ) confirmed earlier this month that if the two stadiums are not rehabilitated on time, Chipolopolo’s next home games may be played at venues outside of Zambia.
Meanwhile, the government is confident that the Levy Mwanawansa stadium will be ready before the qualifiers kick off.
Chileshe Kangwa, the permanent secretary at the Ministry of Sports, revealed in an interview with the Zambia Daily Mail that the government has so far spent K3 million renovating the Levy Mwanawansa, and the work is nearing completion.
“The works at Levy are almost done. We have worked on the dressing rooms and we will have a new shelter for the technical area. We have so far spent K3 million,” he was quoted as saying.
He added: “For the turf at Levy, we have been putting manure on it and watering it…… And it’s good to host international matches. We can only uplift it at a later stage.”
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On November 15th, the Chipolopolo will begin their World Cup qualifier campaign against Congo Brazzaville.
Three days later, they will travel to Niger for their second match in the qualifiers.
Zambia is in Group E alongside Morocco, Congo Brazzaville, Tanzania, Niger, and Eritrea.
