The much awaited Lobatse Stadium is now complete.
This is according to the Director of Sports and Recreation, Falcon Sedimo, in an interview with Sunday Standard.
Sedimo said the stadium was handed to them last week Friday by the Chinese construction company, Zhong Gan Engineering.
“We were handed the stadium last week and I have to say it looks impressive and what is left is for it to be utilized by different sports codes in the country,” he said.
Just like other stadiums in the country, the P130 million project was also behind schedule.
At first, it was supposed to be handed over in January this year and it was earmarked for the likely benefits of the just passed World Cup in neighbouring South Africa.
It did not because the Chinese company decried the fact that they were not given the final plan when they started and had to wait.
The government, on the other hand, said at the time that they wanted the stadium to be modernized and hence it took time for the final plan to be given to the Chinese company.
When it was expected that it was about to be completed, it was said the turf at the stadium was not properly laid and had to be re-done.
Generally, it means the stadium was behind schedule by nine months. The stadium, however, is a huge relief, especially for the be-MOBILE Premier League as there is a shortage of stadiums across the country.
The 20 000 capacity stadium might also be good news for the national team, the Zebras, as the frequently used University of Botswana and others are struggling to accommodate multitudes of soccer fans from all parts of Botswana.
So far, the Zebras have lined up several tough friendly matches with Egypt and Ghana.
The Egyptian match will be played away while that against Ghana will be at home.
The dates and venues have not been decided but Lobatse Stadium might come to the rescue.
