HIGHLANDERS have been challenged to crown their centenary celebrations with silverware, with calls for the Bulawayo giants to end their 20-year league title drought by winning the 2026 Castle Lager Premier Soccer League championship.
The rallying call came as the club unveiled a new 75-seater US$185 000 executive team bus donated by businessman Wicknell Chivayo — a gesture seen as both a symbol of renewed ambition and a reminder that Bosso’s 100-year milestone must be matched by success on the pitch.
Speaking at the unveiling ceremony, Chivayo’s cousin and Highlanders curator, Jabulani Nkomo, said it would be fitting for the club to mark its 100th anniversary with trophies.
“Let us rally behind the players and the coaches, on and off the field of play. We are celebrating 100 years this year and it is my wish that it will be a celebration marked by a trophy or trophies, including winning the PSL championship,” Nkomo said.
He revealed that Chivayo last year injected US$500 000 — part of a pledged US$1 million — into the club, covering winning bonuses and other financial obligations.
Part of the funds was used to clear outstanding signing-on fees and construct a perimeter wall around the club’s sports club.
“This year, US$300 000 is already in the coffers,” Nkomo said.
“For the past few months, every weekend, players have been receiving winning bonuses after match victories. That should not stop; which means we must always win. Wicknell Chivayo and I will be paying every Tuesday. He has committed to that and said he is not going to stop. I hope this motivates the players, the technical team and the new coach, Benjani Mwaruwari, to arrive at a club that has order.”
- Chivayo’s US$25m lawsuit overstated: ZPC
- Muckracker: The circus goes to America
- Hwange ‘explosion’ blackouts Zim
- Hwange ‘explosion’ blackouts Zim
Keep Reading
Nkomo emphasised that Highlanders remains a community-owned institution.
“Highlanders do not belong to one person. It is a community team. It does not belong to Sir Wicknell Chivayo or Sir Jabulani Nkomo,” he said.
Nkomo oversees the funds donated by Chivayo, a Bosso supporter fulfilling a promise made to his late uncle, former Vice-President John Landa Nkomo, who was Jabulani’s father.
Founded in 1926, Highlanders last won the league title in 2006. Their most recent silverware came in 2019 when they lifted the Chibuku Super Cup.
In a speech read on his behalf by club chairperson Luke Mnkandla, Highlanders president Dumisani Sandi paid tribute to Chivayo paid tribute to Chivayo’s support.
“To the players and the technical team, when you step into this bus, remember that you are not only travelling to a match, but carrying the expectations of a community, the history of a people and the responsibility to honour this great club,” he said.
“Let this bus mark the beginning of a new chapter — a chapter of accountability and excellence on and off the field. Once again, I would like to thank Sir Wicknell Chivayo for believing in Highlanders. Your contribution will not be forgotten in the history of this club.”
