NGEZI Platinum Stars are in soup after Fifa ordered the Premier Soccer League club to pay former coach Bongani Mafu close to US$200 000 as compensation for unfair dismissal.

The club was adjudged to have breached Mafu’s contract without just cause.

Mafu was dismissed from the post of assistant to Benjani Mwaruwari together with the former Warriors captain after a string of poor results.

The club’s former goalkeepers’ coach Cosmas Zulu is claiming unpaid sign-on fees for his four-year contract with the club.

Ngezi Platinum Stars were given 45 days to settle what they owe Mafu or face dire consequences which include a transfer ban. It is said that Mafu initiated negotiations with the club but it refused to come to the table.

Last week,  The Standard reported that Tostao Kwashi has taken his case up with Fifa as Caps United refused to pay him outstanding sign-on fees, bonuses and allowances amounting to US$46 000.

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Kwashi, through his legal team, alleges that Caps United promised to pay him, but never came back to him.

Like Ngezi Platinum Stars, Caps United face severe penalties from Fifa if they are caught offside in this case.

Another Premier Soccer League team, Yadah, has been ordered to pay three Brazilian nationals the club signed last year and breached their contracts.

The three cases show a worrying trend stemming from lack of professionalism by local clubs.

All three clubs signed contracts with the individuals but flagrantly decided not to honour some of the terms of those agreements.

For a long time there has been a lack of professionalism at some clubs with coaches and players losing out on their rights and privileges.

Ngezi Platinum Stars seem to have a professional set-up in the administrative structures of the club but they failed to deal with contract issues in an expert manner.

The Yadah case is more embarrassing as it puts the country in the spotlight for the wrong reasons since it involves foreign nationals.

The case casts Zimbabwe as a bad destination for footballers yet we need quality players to improve our leagues.

We hope all the clubs have learnt from the three cases involving some of the biggest football institutions in the country.

Clubs should enter into contracts they have capacity to honour and they should pay players and coaches on time.

Clubs need to be professional for the growth of local football. Professionalism lures sponsors required for clubs to survive economic headwinds currently bedevilling the country. Local clubs have been struggling, save for a few that are sponsored by corporates or whose owners have deep pockets. Most clubs rely on gate takings which are not enough to cater for the welfare of coaches and players given the country’s economic situation.

Fans have been staying away from football matches citing a tough economic environment and the deteriorating standards of the game. 

Of late, there has been an exodus of fans from the premiership to the Northern Region Soccer League matches. Clubs should be professional and adhere to contracts, otherwise the Premier League will be reduced to a boozers’ club.

God forbid.