24 Jan 2018

Botswana will not host the 2018 COSAFA Cup due to budget constraints, says Botswana Football Association(BFA) chief executive officer Mfolo Mfolo.

Speaking during a press briefing the CEO said the expectation was for COSAFA to take care of the entire budget but because of the economic meltdown currently affecting the world, COSAFA felt the burden of taking care of all the costs too much for them to bear.

“That is why they (COSAFA) decided that 25 per cent of the budget, which literally translates to plus or minus P5 million should be the responsibility of the host country,” Mfolo said.

He further said it was dependent upon the federation to see how best they could raise the money which he said was equivalent to the subvention they got from government through Botswana National Sports Commission.

“The same plus or minus P5 million is the one used by the federation for operational costs, so we found ourselves trapped in a cage. I think the best option was to inform COSAFA well in advance that we will not be able to raise the amount,” he said.

Mfolo said he knew it was a disappointment for the country as the move was going to benefit the small business community but there was nothing they could do.

“It is a lost opportunity but going forward we can still host them,” he continued.

Meanwhile the proposed FA Cup will also not be available this season as negotiations took long to be concluded.

“The FA Cup will not be rolled out this season, negotiations took long to be finalised but it will be brought in the 2018/19 season,” he said.

On club licensing, Mfolo said four  clubs being Miscellaneous, Gilport Lions,Extension Gunners and Union Flamingo Santos had been taken to task for not fulfilling the requirements, with Gilport Lions having been given a penalty for non-compliance. Ends