BFA Cancels 2020/2021 Season
Mini tournament to be played
Players’ Union to meet BFA and BFL
After a lengthy period of speculation, Botswana Football Association (BFA) on Saturday finally announced that it has nullified the 2020/2021 football season.
The football season was set to start on March 6, but was forced to be postponed after the government imposed new movement restrictions which are to end in September. There were some calls to scrap off the season as it was not practical to play, whilst players through their union, Footballers Union of Botswana (FUB) argued that they should be a way to return to play.
“The Botswana Football Association National Executive Committee (NEC) members have resolved that the 2020/2021 football season be nullified.
The decision to annul this year’s footballing season was arrived at in an NEC board meeting held at Avani Hotel in Gaborone today (Saturday),” the BFA said in a statement released on Saturday evening.
The Saturday meeting also resolved that they will be a football tournament to be played. Amongst other resolutions taken at the weekend’s meeting was adopting the return to play guidelines to be submitted to the Ministry of Youth Empowerment, Sport and Culture Development and the Botswana National Sports Commission (BNSC).
Whilst there will be a football tournament set to be played ahead of the new football season. Monitor Sport has learnt that stakeholders are eyeing to start the next season in August pending the government’s approval.
Speaking to Monitor Sport last week, FUB secretary general, Kgosana Masaseng said they were ready to welcome any move that will enable a return to the grounds. He said the players’ position has not changed and they are calling for a safe return to play. Masaseng said the union is to meet both the BFA and Botswana Football League (BFL) to discuss an earlier return to play.
“We are supposed to meet the BFA and the newly established BFL (Botswana Football League) next week.
We have put proposals on the table. We are looking to discuss that with them.
It is on the basis of that meeting that we hope to find certain issues dealt with. What we need to discuss is how we are going to return, whether it is the league, a mini tournament or anything.”
“I think the BFA has said that they would have to start the league in August so I do not know in terms of approval, because the government is the one running the show in terms of what can happen and not happen so we are waiting for sport bodies to submit as the minister has said, the proposal to play if, convincing enough then we would be allowed to play.
But our interest is to get back to play as soon as possible even if it is in August, let it be,” Masaseng said. Football was last played in December 2020 with the promotional playoffs.