The Sunday News
Nhlalwenhle Ngwenya, Sunday Life Correspondent
IN a bid to empower the girl child, Thembalethu Foundation has launched a girls’ football tournament set to run from 21 to 22 December at Raylton Sports Club.
The tournament will be graced by seven teams which are New Orleans, Highlanders Royals, Streets Set, Sobukhazi, Borrow Jets, Real Stars and Cowdray Park Queens.
Running under the theme, “changing lives and bringing hope through football,” the tournament is set to run for three years.
Founder of the tournament, Fungai Nyamutukwa-Mpfeka, who once played for the Mighty Warriors, said she was inspired to start the tourney so that she could take football to the grassroots.
“I am a former football player myself and I don’t want to see football dying. Considering the situation in Zimbabwe where football doesn’t have sponsorship, when you start a tournament like this you need to keep it going. As such the tournament will empower the girl child through creating awareness using football,” said Nyamutukwa-Mpfeka.
Since the tournament is funded by locals and people based in the diaspora, Nyamutukwa-Mpfeka, said they needed to ensure that it was a success.
“Since we are based in Bulawayo we need to start it from here then we will take it to other parts of the country. This is the first time to host such a tournament; if it’s successful we will go back to our donors so that we can assess if we are in a position to take the tournament further. If the sponsors are happy with the way that we started, it means we will continue with the tournament next year,” she said.
One of the friends of the tournament, Pardon Nkomo, based in the United Kingdom said the initiative gives hope and also empower the girl child.
“The main aim is to start a tournament that we can also expand to the grassroots and also push it to the rural areas. The main mandate is to address the plight of the girl child and create awareness through football. What I can say is that it’s not more about sponsorship but it’s about improving the plight of the girl child,” said Nkomo.
So far Bakers Inn, Swivel Metal Engineering and Nokel Security, have pledged support for the tournament.
