E270 000 COSAFA CUP PARTICIPATION FEE

MBABANE – COSAFA participation will come at a cost from now onwards.

For the first time in the history of the COSAFA Cup, born in 1997, participating in this tournament will come at a fee. A standard charge of US$18 950 has been tabled for all participating countries and that means the Eswatini Football Association (EFA) will have to fork out precisely E274 147.66 before the end of this month for Eswatini to confirm their participation in this year’s edition of the Council for Southern Africa Football Association (COSAFA) Cup, following a recent resolution by the regional bloc to introduce participation fees. The 2021 COSAFA Cup will be staged in South Africa, starting from July 2-17 as it makes its return on the calendar after it was postponed last year due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Response

The decision, according to COSAFA president Phillip Chiyangwa, is a response to the economic impact of the Covid-19 pandemic, which has led to drying-up of sponsors for COSAFA’s eight competitions; COSAFA Cup (men), Cosafa Women’s Cup, Under-20 men and women, Under-17 men and women, Futsal and beach soccer competitions. Previously, participating nations featured in the regional competition on invitation by the organisers, but for the first time in the competition’s history, member associations will be asked to contribute towards the cost of the competitions. He said the regional football governing body tried to ask for Covid-19 relief funds from FIFA, but it was rebuffed. The COSAFA Cup failed to take place in October last year due to travel restrictions put in place amid the Covid-19 pandemic. When asked if Eswatini would participate in this year’s COSAFA edition in light of these new developments, EFA Communications and Marketing Officer Muzi Radebe said participation would be decided by the executive committee.

However, Radebe said his office had not received any formal notification by the time of compiling this report despite COSAFA’s report that all members had been notified. “We haven’t received anything formal yet.
“All decisions will be approved by the executive committee,” said Radebe. In the history of the tournament, the best that the Eswatini national team, Sihlangu Semnikati, could do was to reach the semi-finals in the year 1999, 2002, and 2003 and has never missed the COSAFA Cup since its introduction in 1997.

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