FAM chickens out on hosting Cosafa

Football Association of Malawi (FAM) has rescinded its decision to bid for the hosting of the 2014 Cosafa Castle Cup, citing substandard infrastructure and broadcasting equipment.

FAM president Walter Nyamilandu on Tuesday confirmed that the Council of Southern Africa Football Associations (Cosafa) wrote soon after this year’s edition held in Zambia in July, giving Malawi first priority.

“We haven’t committed ourselves to hosting. At this stage, I don’t think we will be ready in a year’s time. This is so particularly with issues of television broadcasting equipment which is a big setback,” Nyamilandu confirmed.

“We are yet to respond to Cosafa, but on face value, we are not ready. One of the hurdles is infrastructure. In terms of stadia, we need one in each city and with the Kamuzu Stadium cordoned off, there is none.”

Hosting the 13 teams guaranteed Malawi some R50 million from Cosafa, an amount Nyamilandu said could have changed domestic football fortunes.

“It is a lost opportunity to put the country on the map and when you host, there is high probability of winning the cup. It is also a lost opportunity to entertain our fans,” Nyamilandu noted.

Sharing his experience on what it takes to host the cup, Zambia Football Association general secretary George Kisengele said their government, with the help of the private sector, invested a lot of money.

“You need at least four stadiums of international standard and adequate finances. Lack of television equipment is the main reason Malawi didn’t host the cup last year.

“Television is a requirement by sponsors. They require that it must be of high standard, able to offer international feed to the rest of the region,” Kisengele said in a telephone interview.

Sports director in the Ministry of Youth and Sports Jameson Ndalama recently acknowledged that FAM last year expressed interest to host the cup.