It has been a good year for Botswana, producing two world champions in a space of three months. More could come from the much-maligned Zebras. The team was literally turned into an orphan, thanks to a feud between the Ministry of Youth, Sport and Culture and the previous the Botswana Football Association (BFA) regime. It started with the government rejecting the BFA's request to foot coach, Didier Da Rosa Gomes' salary, largely because he was an expatriate when the minister reportedly preferred a local candidate. This came at the height of the simmering fight between the BFA leadership and minister, Tumiso Rakgare. It got worse when the ministry refused to fund the Zebras' trip to the COSAFA Cup in South Africa in June, arguing there was no money. The BFA had to look for alternative means to get the team to Gqeberha as the Zebras was increasingly used as a weapon of mass destruction in a fight pitting the BFA and the minister. The Zebras went through further agony when the team found itself stranded in the streets of Mauritania, far away from home.
The team only made it back home just six hours before kick-off of their encounter against Egypt, which they went on to lose 4-0. By targeting one of local sport's biggest brands, it was a sure way of driving the dagger in the life of former BFA president, Maclean Letshwiti who lost the September 14 elections to Tariq Babitseng. Victory had been achieved, but at the cost of the Zebras' fortunes. Now, post the Letshwiti ouster, it's back to business as usual. Travel has become seamless and funds are availed on time. But the decision to use the Zebras as a weapon in the fight between certain individuals in government and the BFA could come back to bite the team. It is a fight that can ultimately cost the Zebras a place in next year's finals. But to their credit, the Zebras have put their campaign back on track, despite being treated like the biblical Lazarus. The team fed on crumbs by the very authorities who had indicated they had sufficient funds to make a P10 billion 2027 Africa Cup of Nations bid. When it comes to funding the Zebras, there is no budget, but there was a budget to build multi-million facilities, including a bid book that cost P61 million.
The team plays Cape Verde today, fully aware that victory will push them closer to their second AFCON qualification, 12 years after reaching their first finals in Gabon and Equatorial Guinea. Those who ensured the team did not enter the CHAN draw, almost failed to travel to the COSAFA Cup, got it stranded in Mauritania and rejected funding the coach's salary, will be the first to celebrate when the Zebras qualify for the AFCON finals. Let us hope the damage done during the previous feud will not impact the team's chances of recreating history.
