Moffat Mungazi
Ray Bande
Senior Reporter
WHAT is coming up in the sporting world in 2025?
From new signings to big events and title challenges, barely a week into the year, Post Sport takes a look at some of the big stories to follow over the next 12 months.
Football is naturally the most followed sport the world over and folks in Manicaland are no exception.
Much is expected from Manica Diamonds and GreenFuel, being two of the Premier Soccer League teams based in Manicaland and by extension – Bikita Minerals and Triangle– being other Eastern Region outfits, based in Masvingo and Chiredzi respectively.
Manica Diamonds have flattered to deceive in the past two seasons, after the diamond miners created so much hope for a Premiership title, but somehow the Jairos Tapera-coached team could not last the distance in the race.
In the 2023 season, Manica Diamonds came second, and in the just-ended 2024 season, came fourth – a position that many believe does not reflect the resources that the State diamond miner, Zimbabwe Consolidated Diamond Company has been pouring into the project.
Now that Tapera has been given another two-year contract as the Manica Diamonds coach, it remains to be seen whether the retired soldier will take the club to the Promised Land.
No doubt, Tapera will, not only be judged from the results that he will produce during the season, but he will also be judged starting from his player recruitment approach, a process that is currently underway.
GreenFuel — another Manicaland based premiership outfit — just like their Mutare-based counterparts, have been playing their cards close to their chest, opting not to speak about their new acquisitions until such a time ‘when they are ready’.
The Saul Chaminuka-coached outfit manage to survive relegation by ensuring that they maintain an intact home record at the GreenFuel Arena, a fortress where they never lost a single match.
However, after parting ways with former coach, Rodwell Dhlakama, GreenFuel must have expected much better results, but the club sadly ended up fighting relegation.
Given that 2025 presents an opportunity for Chaminuka to assemble his own squad, it now remains to be seen whether the former Eastern Lions gaffer will put smiles on the faces of the passionate football loving folks in the lowveld.
The third Eastern Region side in the premiership – Bikita Minerals – did well to evade relegation on the last day of the 2024 top-flight league season, and will once again be part of the domestic top-flight league this year.
Well documented financial challenges blighted what was supposed to be a memorable premiership debut season for the lithium miners.
A player exodus midway the season worsened the situation, but to their credit, they fought long and hard to evade relegation.
Now that they will be starting on a clean slate, much is also expected from the lithium miners who at one point endeared themselves with fans at Sakubva Stadium owing to a fine passing game.
In the gentlemen’s game of cricket, Manicaland’s flagship cricket franchise, The Mountaineers are back in the trenches with the hope of restoring lost pride in the Logan Cup competition.
After a short break, action continues this weekend for both the Logan Cup and the Pro50 competitions.
Yes, there has been a whole lot of off the field politics of the game that resulted in coach Steve Mangongo leaving the franchise in a huff and being replaced by caretaker coach, Donald Tiripano.
Be that as it may, those who follow the game of cricket still hope for a better fortune for the Mountaineers franchise, and possibly a return to the olden days of dominance, especially in the Logan Cup competition.
One of the feel good stories in sport in the Year 2024 was the development trajectory that the Manicaland Rugby Board, under the leadership of chairman Mos Kapumha took.
The Kapumha-led board, not only managed to ensure that the game is kept alive in the province, but also ensured that there is more game time for clubs and age group units, while also making sure that the rural folks are not left behind.
Going into 2025, there is genuine hope of developing from the foundation set so far and possibly continue witnessing more exciting development in the game of rugby.
In athletics, the Manicaland Athletics Board retained all the competitions they hosted from the previous year, and more importantly the long distance races such as the Breast Cancer Half Marathon, Tanganda Half Marathon, Old Mutual Vumba Half Marathon, National Aids Council Half Marathon and NetOne Albun Honde Valley Marathon
Manicaland continues to be a powerhouse in the game of tennis, thanks to efforts by Mantas Tennis Academy in the development of the game, especially talent nurturing.
Mantas Tennis Academy managed to maintain the standards of the competitions that is has always been hosting, including the Mantas Open and Manicaland Open.
This year the trend is largely expected to continue.
Table tennis has also been emerging as a sport that Manicaland can eventually boast of producing exceptionally talented players.
Manicaland Table Tennis Association chairman, Peter Mkandi and his team have managed the game so well that well-wishers are coming on board and the sky is not even the limit for the game in the province.
For now, we can only sit back, relax and follow development in different sporting genres as the year 2025 unfolds!
