Zimbabwe Coach Accused of Harassment.

The coach of the Zimbabwe women's football team will appear in court on Wednesday after being accused of sexual assault, police announced. Shadreck Mlauzi was accused of unwanted sexual advances by an assistant coach of his team during a regional tournament in Southern Africa and is still in custody.

The interim leader of the Zimbabwe Football Association said he will wait to hear from law enforcement authorities before deciding Mlauzi's future.

“We will give the police the opportunity to do their job, without prejudice. As a national association, we will follow the path of the police.”

Lincoln Mutasa, leader of the federation's interim governing body, told the Associated Press on Tuesday.

“For now, all we can say is that everyone who traveled to South Africa signed a code of ethics certificate.”

“As a federation, we are carrying out our own investigation.”

“But in this case, we will be guided by the most qualified authority, which is the police.”

Police in Harare announced that Mlauzi will appear in court for a second time on Wednesday.

The tournament in South Africa was Zimbabwe's first competitive tournament since the FIFA lifted a 17-month international ban on government interference in July. The Zimbabwe Football Association also said it has requested that the men's World Cup qualifier against Nigeria in November be held in Rwanda.

Zimbabwe's stadiums have been deemed inadequate by the Confederation of African Football (CAF) in February 2020 and were banned. Zimbabwe will open World Cup qualifying in Rwanda in November. The team is due to host Nigeria four days later at home. However, the federation requested that the second game be played in Rwanda.

The change must be approved by CAF and FIFA.

Picture: © 2023 Nelson Antoine