Harare and Queens sports clubs set for upgrade

Zim Now Writer

Zimbabwe Cricket is set to upgrade the country’s two biggest venues, Harare Sports Club and Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo, ahead of international tournaments which will be held in the country over the next two years.

The country’s two biggest cricket facilities have been filled to capacity whenever the country hosts high-profile matches.

Currently, Harare Sports Club has an estimated carrying capacity of 10 000, while Queens Sports Club hosts 9 000 fans.

The two venues proved too small during the recent World Cup Qualifier where Zimbabwe Cricket created a fan park and ended up turning fans away.

Zimbabwe will co-host the 2026 Under-19 Men’s Cricket World Cup 2026 with Namibia before hosting the senior men’s ODI world cup a year later, hence the need to increase the carrying capacity of the two arenas.

“We all saw how the matches were packed and we ended up depriving people their rights to watch the match. So we have decided to upgrade the stadium. The first phase of the upgrade was the installation of lights at Harare Sports Club, and now we are going to install lights at Queens Sports Club before we move onto the stands and that should all be finished in two years before we host the under 19 World Cup,” said Zimbabwe Cricket chairperson, Tavengwa Mukuhlani.

Harare Sports Club played host to the 2003 World Cup tournament, which Zimbabwe co-hosted with South Africa and Kenya.