Zimbabwe football teams get new Puma kit after deal with Umbro lapsed

TAKUDZWA HILLARY CHIWANZA

Zimbabwe's national football teams have secured a new technical partnership with German sportswear giant Puma, following the end of their previous deal with Umbro and the lifting of their FIFA suspension.

ZIMBABWE ZIFA FOOTBALL TEAM GETS NEW KIT WITH PUMA AFTER UMBRO DEAL EXPIRED

Pic/Soccer24.co.zw

The Zimbabwe Football Association (ZIFA) Normalisation Committee (NC), which was appointed by FIFA in June this year to run the affairs of Zimbabwean football, announced the new contract with Puma on Thursday.

Rosemary Mugadza, a member of the NC, said the deal was signed on Monday, just before the Zimbabwe women's team, known as the Mighty Warriors, left for the 2023 COSAFA Women's Championship in South Africa.

"The deal is for all the national teams, including the junior sides. The Warriors will be using a new Puma kit when they start their 2026 FIFA World Cup Qualifiers in November," Mugadza said.

The Mighty Warriors will debut the new Puma kit when they face Lesotho in their opening match of the regional tournament on Friday afternoon.

Mugadza said the official launch and unveiling of the new kit will be done next year, but did not disclose the financial details or duration of the deal.

The new partnership comes as a boost for Zimbabwean football, which was banned from all international competitions by FIFA in February 2022 over government interference in the running of ZIFA.

FIFA acted after the government-appointed Sports and Recreation Commission (SRC) suspended the ZIFA board over allegations of financial mismanagement, fraud and sexual harassment of female referees by ZIFA officials.

The ban meant that Zimbabwe missed out on the qualifiers for the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations and the 2024 Women's AFCON, among other tournaments, and also had its FIFA funding frozen.

FIFA lifted the suspension in July this year, after setting up a temporary committee to oversee the restructuring of ZIFA, reviewing its statutes and organising elections for a new board by June 2024.

The committee was also tasked with establishing a collaboration agreement between the SRC and ZIFA to address issues of sexual harassment in Zimbabwean football.

Zimbabwe will now be able to participate in the draw for the African qualifiers for the 2026 World Cup, which will take place on Wednesday.