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Mozambique: Machava Stadium edges closer to comeback after $10 million-plus overhaul – Watch
6:03 CAT | 03 Apr 2025
Photo: FMF
The Machava Stadium will only be ready to host football matches between October and November this year, according to the guarantee given by the CEO of the company Ports and Railways of Mozambique (CFM), the owner of the historic sports venue.
Agostinho Langa was speaking during the visit of the Minister of Youth and Sports Caifadine Manasse and the President of the Mozambican Football Federation, Feizal Sidat this Wednesday.
Minister Manasse had also visited the Zimpeto National Stadium this week, accompanied by technicians from the Maputo City Council, to monitor the works there and also to look at environmental sanitation issues.
The visit yesterday to the Machava Stadium by the Minister of Youth and Sports, Caifadine Manasse, accompanied by the President of the Mozambican Football Federation, was part of the inspection to learn about the progress of the works, with a view to hosting football matches, both for the national teams and for the clubs for Moçambola matches.
On the occasion, Minister Manasse and Feizal Sidat were informed by the Chairman of the CFM, Agostinho Langa, about the works underway, namely the interventions in the changing rooms area, the access tunnel, the press area, the grandstand, the stands, the pitch and the lighting.
As for the stands, Agostinho Langa explained that they will be fitted with plastic chairs to make better use of the space, which will allow their capacity to increase to 45,000 spectators, while the pitch will once again be made of natural grass, after the removal of the synthetic grass in 2022.
Regarding lighting, the Machava Stadium will be completely remodelled and installed to allow the venue to once again host night games.
In addition, a video surveillance system and a space for the video referee will be installed in the remodelled sports venue, as well as a tartan athletics track that will allow it to host national and international competitions.
However, the works will not be completed in the short term, even though they are already 70% complete, with the only prospects being that it will host games again between October and November, when the CFM’s Ferroviário club will be celebrating its 101st anniversary, according to the leader of the green-and-white team.
Mozambique’s 50th Anniversary of National Independence
For now, the best prospect is that the sports venue will be used in June for the celebrations of Mozambique’s 50th Anniversary of National Independence, but without any possibility of hosting a match on that date.
Happy Independence Day to Mozambique who gained independence from Portugal in this day in 1975.
Archival footage of Mozambique’s first president, and leader in the liberation movement, Samora Machel, addressing the nation + proclaiming independence. (cont’d) pic.twitter.com/1yZ6ljQcxG
— SUNU Journal (@sunujournal) June 25, 2021
“If that is the intention, to come and celebrate the 50th anniversary here, yes, the pitch will be in good condition. But not for football, because if the 50th anniversary celebrations [in the Machava Stadium] go ahead, we cannot lay the grass, for obvious reasons. Only after that. And if the grass is laid, it will take three months for it to consolidate. Therefore, we cannot consider that the pitch will be ready for the match on 25th June. We will not go back to synthetic grass, it would be an investment that would take us back to the past,” Langa stressed.
In terms of budget, Agostinho Langa revealed that it has increased by almost 50% due to the adjustments made, including for electric lighting and for the modernization of the access tunnel.
“Initially, US$10 million was planned as an investment. Some areas, for example, the electrical area, even the tunnel, which we had initially thought of, later had to evolve to another solution. So, it slipped a bit. I won’t say how much it will be, because it will certainly be more than 50%,” explained the CFM chairman.
REQUALIFICAÇÃO DO ESTÁDIO DA MACHAVA
Obras de grande vulto decorrem no vale de Infulene e vão dar uma imagem moderna ao Estádio da Machava, num evento que ultrapassa os 10 milhões de dólares. #LanceMZ #lancemz6anos pic.twitter.com/5WC5GJqC6j
— Lance.co.mz (@lance_mz) April 2, 2025
Caifadine Manasse satisfied with the execution of the works
The Minister of Youth and Sports was pleased and impressed with the project to refurbish the Machava Stadium. He praised the courage of the company CFM in improving the field so that it would have an international profile.
“What we feel is that the CFM has a board that sees sport as something that must increasingly galvanise our economy, and that must ensure that the youth of this region, as well as Mozambicans, have the opportunity to have another pitch with an international profile. This shows that the decision that the CFM took regarding this major infrastructure, which is an infrastructure that is here where our independence was declared by President Samora Machel, clearly demonstrates that, by thinking in this way, the CFM board deserves our salute and deserves our thanks. We leave here happy because we have had problems with sports infrastructures,” said the Minister of Youth and Sports.
In fact, the Minister said that what he saw supports his vision of the Machava Stadium as a viable alternative to the Zimpeto National Stadium for international matches played by the Mambas and the national clubs involved in the Afro Cups.
“You have to remember that not long ago we had to play abroad because our Zimpeto Stadium was not in good condition. We always say that there is an alternative field, which is this one, the Machava field, and when we arrived here today, we saw this great work that is being done,” Manasse stressed.
The President of the Mozambican Football Federation, Feizal Sidat, congratulated the Ports and Railways of Mozambique company on the project it is executing and stressed that the organization he leads is closely monitoring the progress of the works, especially since it serves as an advisor for the project.
Nevertheless, Sidat warned that there is still a lot of work to be done in order to meet the necessary requirements for approval to host international matches.
“But based on the approach we had with the project owners, the works are expected to be completed between October and November, so we believe that a lot will be done by then,” Sidat said.
Although projections indicate that the Machava Stadium will be ready by October or November, the head of the Football Federation rules out the possibility of hosting the [national football team] Mambas’ games in September and October of this year, as part of the 2026 World Cup qualifiers.
“There is still a lot of work to be done, so we need to have another alternative so that we can host Botswana and Guinea-Conakry,” he said.
For now, the biggest prize that the Machava Stadium could have is the hosting of the Mozambique Cup final, in late November or early December, depending on the Moçambola-2025 match schedule.
Agostinho Langa – Chairman of the CFM
“It is a major investment. It is from the CFM, but it is an investment from the Mozambican State,” said CFM chairman Agostinho Langa.
“The stadium is a national heritage site and, when discussing the renovation, we wanted to maintain the stadium’s original features. Therefore, as I said, this is a major national investment in preserving the National Stadium, for all that it represents, especially in relation to the celebration of national independence.
“We are hoping that in October, to mark the anniversary of Ferroviário, the stadium will be ready for use. From the very first day, we invited the federation to advise us, because we know that we are experts in the matter, and we will take into consideration all the corrections that they have raised and proposed, and I believe that yes, we can”.
Caifadine Manasse – Minister of Youth and Sports
“This clearly shows that Mozambicans are taking patriotism seriously, and in the management of companies they are considering that they also have to work towards what is good for Mozambicans. Sport is good for Mozambicans,” said Caifadine Manasse, Minister of Youth and Sports.
“Sport brings Mozambicans together, it brings together various sensibilities.
“This means that CFM is taking a very responsible approach to this issue of sports. We are happy and encourage the management to continue working on this major project, working towards having this infrastructure completed as quickly as possible, because only then will we be contributing or doing things differently to achieve different results, as our president said. And we will also work with the CFM management to ensure that this field is an alternative in the near future.
“We know that Ferroviário de Maputo will be playing in the Afro Cups and we would like Mozambicans to watch the games here at this field, which is important.”
Source: O País
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