International player and Mamelodi Sundowns striker, Peter Shalulile has expressed his disappointment in the condition of the country’s football infrastructure used by the senior national football team to train.

The Independence Stadium, which is owned by the government, and the City of Windhoek-owned Sam Nujoma Stadium, has been declared unfit for international matches by international football governing bodies.

Despite being declared unfit for use, the stadiums cannot host local games or be used for training by the national senior football team due to their deplorable conditions.

Speaking to the media on Tuesday as the Brave Warriors are busy preparing for their upcoming African Nations Cup qualifiers against Burundi on Tuesday, 22 June 2023, national team captain Shalulile said for the past 11 years there has not been a positive change in how things are done or in the improvement of structures.

“We are struggling with training grounds and for one to play good football they need good grounds. The team is preparing well for its upcoming game, but with all the ups and downs that are happening, there is nothing we can do but push and remain positive for the Burundi game. We went through this 11 years ago and we hoped things would change, but nothing has been done,” he said.

Shalulile stressed that as senior footballers they have to lay a foundation for the next generation of players, therefore the current struggles should be improved so that the next generation of players can reap the fruit of their hard work.

Finance Minister Iipumbu Shiimi this year allocated an amount of N.dollars 162.5 million towards the renovation and upgrading of the Independence Stadium in Windhoek over the Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) from the N.dollars 473.2 million that was allocated to the Ministry of Sport, Youth and National Service for the 2023/2024 financial year.

Since the announcement in February this year, no renovation has been done to the dilapidated stadiums.

Chief Administrator of the Namibia Sports Commission, Freddy Mwiya said it is sad to see senior national football teams playing their games away from home, but the government is working hard to see national team games being played at home by June 2024.

Source: Namibia Press Agency