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Masango Chigama becoming the latest to invest in the game.
Chigama starred in the Dynamos Class of 1998 that made history by becoming the first Zimbabwean team to reach the Champions League final in which they, however, lost 4-2 on aggregate to Cote d’Ivoire giants ASEC Mimosas.

Chigama and his partner in the UK, Hastings Kamanga, will next month launch the 4-3-3 Football Academy at Dzivarasekwa High School 2. According to the organising team, the October 14 ceremony will be held at noon with a reception and an inaugural match following up.
“Speakers include Academy president Ernest Masango Chigama, vice president Hastings Kamanga, Dzivaresekwa High 2 Headmistress M Mupandawana and Ministry of Education Sports Arts and Culture representative T Mahofa.

“Also invited to speak is the Member of Parliament Evelyn Saiti, Zimbabwe Footballers Union president Desmond Maringwa and Zifa CEO Jonathan Mashingaidze.
“The academy was started by Chigama and Kamanga as a way to give back to the Harare community and to provide young players with opportunities to reach their professional goals. “The idea for the academy began in 2007 when Chigama saw that young football players needed more opportunities to improve their skills. He also wanted to help talented individuals to realise their goals of playing for the top teams in

Zimbabwe and beyond to more established leagues in the world,” read a statement from the academy.
Chigama is also promising to turn around the face of grassroots football in the sprawling suburb of Dzivaresekwa.

“The launch on October 14 is the beginning of that dream coming to fruition. 4-3-3 Football Academy will be working with students at Dzivaresekwa High 2.
“The academy is providing sporting equipment, uniforms, coaches, additional training for coaches and advanced training methods for players.

“The academy wants to help young players understand the game by preparing their mental, physical, and tactical awareness on how to play football at a competitive level,” Chigama said.
“Today we begin with Dzivarasekwa High 2. Over time we will expand our services and reach out beyond the borders of Zimbabwe to other countries as well,” Chigama said.

The welcome gesture by Chigama and his friend Kamanga is a continuation of the goodwill and realisation by former players and football enthusiasts to go back to basics and invest in young footballers who can be nurtured into future stars. A host of former and current players including Moses Chunga, Peter Ndlovu, Norman Mapeza, Edzai Kasinauyo, Size Torindo, John Zhaneiro and Dickson Choto have chipped to assist young footballers to try and realise their dreams by providing a platform for them to express their talents.

The efforts of such men have also been complemented by such people like Marc Duvillard and Nigel Munyati who own the Aces Youth Academy, Calvin Nyazema’s Sprouting, Stanley Kudenga’s Chitungwiza United, Methembe Ndlovu of Bantu Rovers and Zimbabwe Soccer Coaches Association chairman Bheki Nyoni who runs the BN Academy.
There has also been a renewed interest in the junior policy by Premiership sides with such teams like Dynamos, CAPS United, Highlanders and Gunners leading the way in the investment in young talent. The top-flight league has also made it mandatory that five of the players to be registered in each PSL season should be below 19 years, as a way of safeguarding the future of the game while the Northern Region

Division One had tried to insist on their clubs being limited on the registration of players who are over 25 years.
Only this week Zifa, in partnership with Fifa, the Zimbabwe Olympic Committee, the municipalities, the Ministry of Education, Sport, Arts and Culture and the Sport and Recreation Commission, rolled out a grassroots programme in which they are looking at harnessing talent from children who are aged between 6-12 years across the country.