By: Ludorf Iyambo
On Thursday, sports minister Agnes Tjongarero said Botswana would contribute 60 per cent and Namibia 40 per cent of the resources needed after the two countries officially signed a deal to bid for the Afcon 2027 collectively.
The deal will facilitate establishing the technical bid committee and producing the bid document for submission to CAF in line with the set timelines.
“The same principle shall apply in sharing proceeds and benefits of hosting Afcon 2027. In the likely event we are successful in securing the rights to host the Afcon finals, Namibia will host the opening ceremony, and Botswana will host the closing ceremony and both the third-place playoff and final match.”
The deal also entails lobbying for support from various international structures and developing a robust and appealing strategy that will secure the involvement of the private sector and other key stakeholders at the project’s bid stage to complement the two governments’ resource contributions.
Additionally, working through the formal bidding process for Botswana and Namibia to secure the rights for the two countries is also part of the agreement.
“In this arrangement, Botswana will host 24 of the 36 group stage matches, whilst Namibia will host 12. Botswana will host five of the eight rounds of 16 matches, whilst Namibia hosts three matches. She said that the quarter-finals and the semi-finals will be shared equally between the two countries,” she said.
The minister added that there would be a bid technical committee established by both countries, with the chairperson coming from Botswana and the vice-chairperson from Namibia.
She further said the committee would also be responsible for lobbying for support from various CAF affiliated structures.
“This will be conducted with the full support of the political leadership of the two countries. I want to take this opportunity to pledge this unconditional support from all levels of the political leadership of Botswana and Namibia.” Said Tjongarero.
Meanwhile, Tjongarero’s counterpart, Botswana sports minister Tumiso Rakgare said this opportunity would help arrest the volatile unemployment situation.
“We need to arrest social and economic ills through sport. Our dream is centred on a developmental ambition more than a mere 90-minute spectacle. It must be the footballers and its ancillary stakeholders who benefit from the Afcon. But the legacy must be unquestionable,” said Rakgare.
