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Omega Sibanda

ZIFA vice-president, Omega Sibanda has been appointed as a match commissioner for a Youth Futsal match between Angola and Zambia set for the weekend of January 12-14, 2018.

The Bulawayo-based businessman and football administrator was recently appointed into the Caf Futsal and Beach Soccer Committee which has the mandate of spearheading the development of futsal and beach soccer on the continent.

Sibanda was excited by the responsibility bestowed on him and the trust that CAF continues to show in him and the Zimbabwean football leadership.

“I am honoured to be selected to officiate at such a high-profile stage.

“Apart from the obvious recognition that CAF continues to accord our football leadership, the experience is critical for me and the association as we seek to establish our own Futsal and Beach Soccer teams in the near future,” Sibanda told the association’s official website www.zifa.org.zw

Locally, Zifa is making strides towards creating infrastructure to enable the practice of beach soccer. A beach soccer pitch under construction at the Zifa Village in Mt Hampden, Harare, is 90 percent complete and will soon be usable.

Futsal is an exciting, fast-paced small sided football game that is widely played across the world and is officially recognised by both UEFA and Fifa.

The nature of the game places a large emphasis on technical skill and ability in situations of high pressure, and is subsequently an excellent breeding ground for football competencies that can be translated into the 11-a-side format of the game.

Many of the top world class footballers played Futsal in their youth and credit it with supporting their footballing development; players of the calibre of Pele, Zico, Ronaldinho, Kaka, Lionel Messi to name but a few of the South American legends all played and enjoyed Futsal.  But Futsal has not just helped produce South American football stars. On the European stage Cristiano Ronaldo, Deco, Xavi and Cesc Fabregas, amongst many others, have played Futsal to develop their skills. — @skhumoyo2000.