FAM says the District Football Leagues will bridge the gap between elite football and lower levels and ensure systematic football structures at all levels across the country.
The Association’s President Walter Nyamilandu Manda made the remarks on Saturday afternoon during the launch of the FAM Districts League for Northern Region at Chiwaza ground in Chintcheche, Nkhatabay.
Nyamilandu said the Leagues will offer a platform for every young player in the rural areas to blossom and achieve their dreams of playing football at top level.
“It has been our dream to have organised football structures at lower levels across the country to bridge the gap with elite football.
“We know the large population particularly the youth come from the rural areas and the competitions we had were not able to reach out to every corner of the country.
“Now that we have established these District Leagues, every talent will be given an opportunity to blossom and play for the flames. We have serious ambitions to take Malawi football forward and this can only happen if we identify the best talent in the country. This talent is hidden somewhere in the rural areas and we will be able to unleash that talent through these leagues,” said Nyamilandu.
He pleaded with government through the Local government authorities to ensure that all districts have stadiums to offer proper venues for the Leagues.
“For football to develop we should have the right resources and the stadia is a critical resource for the talent we have to flourish.
“We have a lot of spaces across the country which must be utilized. We will be talking to local government that while this competition is taking places, they should construct low-cost stadiums for these leagues,” he said.
FAM Competitions Committee Chairperson Jabbar Alide said the Leagues will help to put in place a proper competition structure for relegation and promotion in Regional Leagues.
“Going forward we will use the district leagues to feed into the Regional Leagues on top of developing talent for national teams,” said Alide.
Northern Region Football League Chairperson Dr. Lameck Khonje said: “As chairperson of NRFA all I can say is thank you FAM president for giving us the long-awaited gift of District Leagues. We are very excited and football development is back in communities.”
FAM in March last year unveiled a package of K60 million for the League and each of the 29 Football Districts League will get K 2 million.
The Leagues, which were supposed to kick off in May last year but were put on hold due to COV ID-19, will kick off on 31st July, 2021
Kawiya Eagles and Chichiri FC drew 1-1 in a ceremonial match played in Chintheche to spice up the Northern Region launch. Similar events will be held for the Central Region on 31st August in Salima and for the Southern Region on 7th August in Nsanje.
