The National Football Team (Mambas) will face its Rwandan counterpart, at 18h00, on June 22nd, in the first match of the qualifying group stage for the African Nations Championship (CAN) 2024.

The Mambas will be the host, but the game will take place outside of the Mozambican territory because the National Team's official field in the Zimpeto National Stadium does not meet the conditions to receive high-level games.

"[Due to] its inadequacy in relation to the requirements demanded by the Confederation of African Football (CAF), this body has banned the National Stadium of Zimpeto," reads a letter from the Mozambican Football Federation (FMF) to which MZNews had access addressed this Tuesday (17), to the Secretary of State for Sports (SED), Gilberto Mendes.

According to the document "neighboring South Africa is the most viable option due to its proximity and travel conditions.

In this context, the FMF presented to the SED the cost of renting a stadium in South Africa - not identified in the document - for hosting the game.

The FMF says in the letter that to hold the Mambas game behind closed doors the cost will be 280.787,50 rand, equivalent to 1.134.379,48 meticais, in the current exchange rate (1 RZA=4.04 MZn). And a game open to the public may cost 597.854,50 rands, equivalent to 2.415.33218 meticais. In other words, the value of the closed-door game would more than double, R317,067 (1,280,950.68 meticais), more than enough for another field rental if the rehabilitation of the Zimpeto National Stadium parades only in propaganda.

The document does not mention which stadium the FMF will choose to hold the match, but according to our source it is the FNB Stadium, whose managers may take over the Zimpeto National Stadium.