Despite poor performance by the national soccer team in recent years, Zimbabweans have never lost love for the world’s most popular sport.
To some, soccer is not just a sport, but a religion they follow dogmatically.
The FIFA 2014 World Cup tournament now being over, soccer lovers are now bracing for the English Barclays Premiership Soccer League (BPL).
Despite their enthusiasm for our own local Premier Soccer League, the debates in pubs and other social gatherings are now largely about soccer stars have been transferred to which team in Europe prior to the beginning of that continent’s soccer season.
Many are fanatics who cannot afford to miss a single match of their favourite European teams. However a majority prefer to watch these matches at popular sports clubs instead of the comfort of their homes. This does not go down well with many wives who feel their precious family time has been taken over.
Mrs Maputu a mother of three from Mabvuku, says “I hate the soccer season, my husband barely comes home for supper, I can actually count the number of days per week he comes before nine and than those he comes late, I am so irritated I have lost count. Beer halls become their wives during soccer season leaving us left out and having to entertain the kids with no extra time to ourselves”.
A Mrs Banda from Vainona says “Weekends where we used to take our two toddlers for ice cream and just even a drive to a park or some recreational has turned into lone weekends as my husband usually wears his teams shirt or a golf shirt and heads out just after breakfast. He has no time to talk to me or even tuck into bed his own children but is constantly talking about the score line and how he lost some money in a bet with his friends and guess what the time would be? Midnight”.
“My boyfriend is completely unavailable during football season, we are engaged to be married and sometimes I visit his bachelor pad and he is never there and if by chance he is he would be watching soccer from home, he totally ignores me. This fanaticism is beginning to worry me and how it may affect our marriage”.
Since most international matches are played during late hours of Zimbabwean time fatherly attention is turned away from family.
To those who prefer watching these matches at drinking spots it is almost as though they are avoiding going home early by using football as an excuse to imbibe.
Ronald Shumba is an accountant at a local firm who spends the whole day at work.
Although he is very aware that his family needs him after work, he finds it difficult to miss the English Premier League matches.
“I am a loving and caring father, and I’m very conscious that I should be with my family after spending the whole day at work.
At the same time I can’t watch soccer matches at home because there is no excitement that I can find when I watch with my friends at the club.” Said the self-confessed Manchester United fan.
Others prefer watching soccer at clubs for different reasons beyond jeering and cheering with other soccer fans.
Another football fan, Mr. Charumbira, says he prefers to watch soccer at popular joints in town because he wants to have fun with friends after a tiring day at work.
“Going home immediately after work is not an option to me because I take is as an opportunity to refresh and drink with my colleagues after spending the whole day at work.
“It is the only time I can have an opportunity to have of couple of beers which is something I cannot do either at work nor home with my family” he said.
He also added that sometimes he makes a couple of dollars from betting soccer matches with his peers.
“We usually bet on some of those soccer matches, and sometimes I win some money that goes a long way in complimenting my meager salary which alone is not enough to put food on the table. The downside is that sometimes you can though.” Charumbira added.
