Sportswire has learned that the South African Football Association (SAFA) lodged a complaint with FIFA, leading to Zimbabwe’s upcoming FIFA World Cup qualifying match being relocated to Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban next month.

Venue Dispute and FIFA Rules

Originally, Zimbabwe, which has been hosting its World Cup and Africa Cup qualifying matches in South Africa, intended to play the match against Benin in Francistown, Botswana, on 10 October.

However, the venue was already scheduled to host a World Cup qualifying match between Botswana and Uganda on 9 October, as per FIFA preliminary dates. This scheduling conflict infuriated SAFA officials, who argued to FIFA that the arrangement was unacceptable.

FIFA rules state that a visiting team must have access to the stadium for a training session on the eve of a match. If the game had gone ahead in Botswana, Bafana Bafana would not have been able to train at the venue the day before the match and would only have had a feel of the pitch on match day itself.

Knowing that this is a crucial match for Bafana Bafana’s bid to qualify for next year’s World Cup, SAFA formally complained to FIFA. In response, FIFA ruled in SAFA’s favor, declaring that the scheduled training conflict could not be allowed.

As a result, FIFA declined the request for the match to be held in Botswana, leading to Zimbabwe’s decision to move the game to Moses Mabhida Stadium, as revealed by Sportswire.

Previous Precedent and Current Status

SAFA has previously allowed such a situation to slide. For their World Cup qualifier against Benin in March in Ivory Coast, Bafana Bafana were forced to train at a local school instead of the match venue, Stade Félix Houphouët-Boigny, which was hosting a game between Ivory Coast and Gambia the day before.

Despite this, Bafana Bafana still went on to beat Benin 2-0. This time around, however, SAFA has insisted that this cannot happen.

Sportswire sent messages to ZIFA president Nqobile Magwizi and Botswana’s president Tariq Babitseng for comment, but both did not reply.

Bafana Bafana are currently at the top of Group C with 17 points after eight matches, three points ahead of Benin. However, SAFA is under investigation by FIFA for allegedly fielding an ineligible player, Teboho Mokoena, in their March qualifier win over Lesotho.

Mokoena had accumulated two yellow cards, which should have triggered a one-match suspension. If Bafana Bafana are docked points and a 3-0 win is awarded to Lesotho, Benin will take the top spot in the group heading into the last two matches next month.

However, Sportswire has been informed that Bafana are likely to receive a fine from FIFA, and no points will be deducted. After the Zimbabwe match at Moses Mabhida Stadium, Bafana Bafana will conclude their World Cup qualifiers against Rwanda at Mbombela Stadium.

In the African qualifiers, only the group winners automatically qualify for the FIFA World Cup in Canada, Mexico, and the USA. The four best-placed runners-up will get a second chance via a play-off round.