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VACCINATION TO SAVE ABOUT E1M FOR EFA, PLE

29/09/2021 08:24:00 BY NTOKOZO MAGONGO

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MBABANE – The COVID-19 vaccine will come as a huge financial relief for the PLE and EFA.

The two organisations, being the Eswatini Football Association (EFA) and the Premier Legaue of Eswatini (PLE), will save over E1 million in COVID-9 tests this season as the players would have taken the jab. EFA and the PLE spent about E3 million in the 2020/21 season testing the 16 premier league teams and the 14 MTN National First Division League teams. The players were tested three times during the season that started in December and ended in July, with each testing session costing over E800 000.
A source close to the matter confirmed that the COVID-19 tests were now likely to be done once, and that is before kick-off, unless the fourth wave hits the country. The players were made to do the COVID-19 PCR test that costs E850 per individual. Each team, with players close to 30, needed about E25 500 for the test. This means the 16 teams in the elite league spent around E408 000 and first division costs around around E357 000.

Expenses

This excludes expenses for the testing of match officials such as referees. “There won’t be a need to test once the teams and its players have all vaccinated. It is part of those reasons that the EFA and the PLE are pushing that everyone gets vaccinated including fans. The vaccination exercise comes with good news to the organisation and that is the reason they have embraced the campaign for vaccination,” he said. The source added that if they are forced to test, at least they will do it once and that is before kick-off. The 2021/ 22 season is expected to kick-off in two weeks’ time. PLE Chief Operations Officer (COO) Pat Vilakati said they will be doing the tests before kick-off and then they would be determined by the situation going forward. He said they had already released the schedule to teams for COVID-19 testing. “We have to test the teams before kick-off. Testing in football is compulsory while vaccinating is up to an individual so we have to do the testing before the season kick-off,” he said.