By McGeorge Mbare
TWO names are outstanding when Beitbridge District reflects on its 2025 soccer calendar as regards investments and results.
Tinashe Mabidi and Loadwell Ziyadumah of Ronnie’s Sports Arena and Ziyah Media come out first.
Other investors in the sport are Tendani Sebata and a number of dedicated officials who gave their time to developing and bringing the beautiful game to the district.
Residents of the district, just like the rest of Matabeleland South, did not have any premier league games in their area.
Little if any, saw any players from the country’s top flight premier league in action in the province.
But courtesy of Mabidi’s Ronnie’s Arena, Beitbridge residents had the opportunity to rub shoulders and shake hands with many players in the premiership.
When two years ago Dynamos came to train in Beitbridge where they sought the searing heat to harden their players, they opened floodgates of teams who throng Beitbridge at the onset of the season to “harden” their players.
Clemence Mabidi, who manages Ronnie’s Sports Arena said:
“We have Manica Diamonds, Highlanders, Bikita Minerals, Triangle FC and Green Fuel. We are also expecting to host 4 other PSL teams before the 2026 season kick off including Mwos FC,” Mabidi said.
Ronnie’s Sports Arena is eight kilometres up the Beitbridge – Harare road and is a soccer oasis.
It presents two standard size football pitches, apart from grounds for several other disciplines.
Their turf is lush green and the effort to bring comfort to both players and spectators is commendable.
The arena boasts of bars and traditional and exotic food outlets and a spacious car parking area.
Ronnie’s arena has comfortable ablution facilities whic make Dulivhadzimu Stadium look like a joke.
The sports facility’s strongest attraction is it accessibility and breeze of undiluted air that flies and envelopes the air.
The stadium is also home to Dulibadzimu United of Centra Region Division One which uses that as their optional ground.
This year it hosted Vice President Kembo Mohadi’s colourful birthday whose theme centred on the fight against drugs and substance abuse. It involved soccer matches.
In soccer Ronnie’s Sports Arena has also hosted notable Dulibadzimu United home matches against Gwanda Pirates, Shabane Mine, and many more in the Central Region Soccer League Division One. It also hosts netball games.
Ziyadumah wrote his own piece of history in the Beitbridge soccer hall of fame.
One will not be able to talk about the 2025 National Schools Soccer Tournament without mention of Vhembe Stars Academy owned by Ziyadumah.
Ten players from that academy were inside the Zezani Secondary School team that romped home to victory beating all secondary schools in Zimbabwe.
During the year, Ziyaduma bought his Vhembe Stars a team bus, becoming the first individually owned academy in Matabeleland South to climb that mount.
Minister of State for Provincial Affairs and Devolution Albert Nguluvhe for Matabeleland South Albert Nguluvhe commissioned the bus at a colourful function at Dulivhadzimu Stadium.
Ziyadumah has been sponsoring several local schools such as Zezani, Nuli, Tongwe, Swereki, Vhembe, and St Mary’s, uplifting their sporting activities.
To close the youth soccer development in 2025, Ziyadumah, in partnership with the Government hosted 10 schools in an annual soccsr tournament that turned three years.
Chibi Secondary School, the only one from outside Beitbridge, won the tournament for the third time to make a treble.
That tournament also brought Zimbabwe and Africa’s celebrated soccer icon Peter Ndlovu who took his time to mingle with crowds and take dozens of selfies with admirsrs of Africa’s first player in the English Premier League.
Sebata, who may have been obscure, made some visibility associating with Dulibadzimu United in soccsr transactions that are not yet clear.
But what is known is he gave opportunity to some Dulibadzimu United players a chance to growing their trade with Pitso Muleya among the beneficiaries.
Sebata is also known for hosting and sponsoring, the Sikwari-Mapata annual tournament ,where Zezani High school ,Kwalu and Siyoka are some of the participants.
In administration notable names are Mandla Moyo, who has been at the helm of Dulibadzimu United, Christian Magwali of the same team and Foster Abheki of Vhembe Stars.