Bonface Osano
Zambian top league, which recently resumed, will be stopped after weekend matches after a surge in COVID-19 cases in the country.
The league was halted in March, like in other parts of Africa, to help curb spread of the deadly virus, but action resumed two weeks ago after compliance with health guidelines.
In a statement, Football Association of Zambia (FAZ) said there has been concerns from authorities that recent surge in Coronavirus cases has strained the country’s health sector.
Zambia’s latest Coronavirus statistics stand at 5,555 confirmed cases, 3,289 recoveries and 149 deaths.
“One of the major challenges has been the long delays in securing test appointments and results by most of the clubs in the league after being tested which meant that certain matches could not be played due to the inability of clubs to produce results when called upon to do so. Regrettably, with the surge in numbers it has meant that the flow of results has been slower,” reads the statement.
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Clubs have also been unable to fully comply with health guidelines as regards isolation of players and club officials who test positive, unrestricted access to camping sites, social distancing, and lack of sanitizers and disinfectants.
“Arising from the following challenges and in view of the high incidents of new COVID-19 cases the FAZ executive has been left with no choice but to bring the league to an early closure.”
FAZ has since provided a roadmap on the completion of the current league and the resumption of the 2020/2021 season.
The current league will be concluded on August 6, 2020, after all the teams have played their Week 27 round of matches.
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Accordingly, champions will be declared for both the FAZ Super Division and FAZ Eden University National Division One.
FAZ will also ensure that all outstanding issues around fixtures are cleared to avoid controversy.
The lower leagues and women leagues will also be allowed to wind down their season by playing an equal number of games.
Furthermore, the executive has decided that the 2020/2021 season will commence on October 17, 2020.
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