Resumption of Elite Football Championship : These Persistent Hurdles

The national football championship will kick off in Cameroon on September 26, 2020 all things being equal. The resumption will bring an end to a long imposed break by the Coronavirus pandemic. Ahead of the restart, clubs in Cameroon have been preparing, recruiting players and officials to ensure the best result. The start of the new season next month will equally enable the Intermediate Lions to prepare for the African Nations Championship (CHAN) which will take place in Cameroon in January 2021. The 2020-22021 season will kick off amidst persistent problems.

Lack of Stadiums

First of all there is the usual problem of lack of adequate stadiums. Over the years, playground has always been a major hindrance as far as the national championship is concerned. The major cause for worry is that there are doubts as where the championship matches will be played this season. In Cameroon, there are about 12 stadiums in the country with at least a capacity of 10,000 spectators. Even though these stadiums exist they are most often not available for play during the national championship. Stadiums like the Melong Municipal Stadium, the FECAFOOT Technical Centre Odza, to name just a few are in a pitiable situation. A total of eight players are wounded in three matches in these stadiums because of the poor state of the fields. For two seasons most of the national championship matches were being played in municipal and private stadiums as the main stadiums were closed down for some months in preparation for the Africa Cup of Nations. With the present situation of the COVID-19 pandemic stadiums like the Military Stadium in Yaounde and the Mbappe Leppe Stadium in Douala have been turned to COVID-19 centres. It is now uncertain whether these stadiums will be free before the kick off of the season.

Management of COVID-19 Tests

Another major cause for concern is the management of the test for COVID-19 cases for players. Due to the effects of the coronav...