Harare suspends sponsoring men’s volleyball team due to funding constraints

The Harare City Council has temporarily suspended sponsoring its men’s volleyball team due to financial constraints, an official has said.

Harare City Volleyball Club (HCVC) team manager Goodknows Jembere told New Ziana they were channeling the limited funding towards developing the women’s team as funds did not permit sponsoring teams.

“The suspension is temporary. As a club we are struggling financially and we saw it fit to suspend temporarily one team for this season while we are reviewing our financial flows,” he said.

“It’s a very tough decision but we have no option than to scale down our teams for a season.”

Formed in 2016 and also affectionately known as “the Citizens”, the HCVC is one of the biggest volleyball cubs in the country and it gets funding from the Harare City Council.

Recently the team bagged a silver medal at the Zone 6 Club Championships in Lilongwe, Malawi and made a series of five-time appearances at the tournament in 2021, ending in the semifinals.

It has won the Zimbabwe Premier Volleyball League (ZPVL) twice, the highest level of playing for club games in Zimbabwe.

Club chairperson Bosman Matengarufu wrote to the players, partners, sponsors, the Zimbabwe Volleyball Association (HVA), the media and the volleyball sector to inform them about the suspension.

“The club in terms of section 14 (6.26) of the constitution and the minute item 7 of the executive meeting held on 2 February 2024 regrettably resolved to temporarily suspend the running and participation of the men’s team in any competition due to limited funding. The resolution will be reviewed at the end of the 2024 volleyball season,” said Matengarufu.

He said players can join any clubs of their choice on free loan for the period under review. However, the club will still run the women’s volleyball team.

“The club took the ‘functional management approach’ and will be focusing on strengthening the women’s team with the limited funding and a pool of qualified and experienced technical team. We appreciate and acknowledge the loyalty players have shown to the club and the club will be open to assist in securing employment as usual. It is our hope that the club will be soon financially able and regroup again.”

The City of Harare’s sponsorship of sporting teams in the football, basketball, volleyball and other disciplines has been a subject of heated debate in recent years given the municipality’s failure to adequately fund its core mandate of service delivery.

Harare residents have been urging the city to focus on providing community venues in the residential areas and national venues such as Rufaro Stadium (soccer) and the City Sports Centre (tennis) as part of its contribution to sports development and recreation instead of sponsoring teams at a time the city is struggling financially. – New Ziana/Suburban Reporter