Controversial businessman and prophet Walter Magaya is at the center of explosive allegations that he is bankrolling a scheme to sow chaos within the Zimbabwe Football Association (ZIFA) and destabilize the national team camp ahead of the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) tournament in Morocco this December.
According to a high-level source within ZIFA who spoke exclusively to BustopTV on condition of anonymity, Magaya is financing a group of ZIFA councillors to systematically oppose the current executive led by President Nqobile Magwizi.
“The current ZIFA executives is facing a coordinated internal attack,” the source revealed.
“There are a number of Councillors who are staying at Yadah Hotel being paid by Magaya to team up against the ZIFA Executives. All decisions that the executive tries to implement, these paid councillors try to rally against it.”
The allegations extend beyond boardroom politics into public sentiment.
The source directly linked the recent public and media uproar over the new Warriors kit to this alleged plot.
“I want to be clear: the public outcry about the Warriors kit is to destabilize, and we are aware that some journalists and social media bloggers are being paid for this,” the source said.
“ZIFA did a good job on the Warriors designing jersey and the competition was fair, but why now dismissing the jersey? This is not about the Warriors kit but it’s the internal politics to dismiss ZIFA executive decisions.”
The source further alleged that the same bloc, backed by Magaya, opposed the recent appointment of the new national team coach, Marian Mario Marinica.
“We are not happy with what Magaya is doing with his camp,” the source added, referencing Magaya’s previous dismissal from ZIFA electoral processes due to a fake O-Level certificate.
“This is not the first time Magaya has been fingered in such football politics.”
The allegations paint a picture of a deep-rooted power struggle threatening to derail the Warriors’ preparations for one of football’s biggest continental stages.
Attempts to get an official comment from ZIFA were unsuccessful by the time of publication.
Walter Magaya, the founder of Yadah Hotels and owner of Yadah FC, could not be reached for comment.
He has historically denied any involvement in disruptive football politics, framing his interests as purely philanthropic and developmental.
The AFCON tournament kicks off in December, placing the Warriors’ campaign under intense scrutiny.
These latest allegations suggest the most significant battle may not be on the pitch in Morocco, but in the fraught political arena of Zimbabwean football at home.
