Several matters, including promotion and relegation of teams, were discussed during the Safa Vhembe Regional League's meeting with the clubs held at the Munakisi Hall in Muledane last Saturday.
During the meeting, it was confirmed that the last two teams from each stream will be relegated to the lower division at the end of the season.
The treasurer of the league, Mr James Maluleke, presented the budget for the 2024/25 soccer season. He stated that only 101 of the 207 clubs had paid their affiliation fees in full, while 21 had paid a fraction of the R4,500 affiliation fee.
The general secretary of the league, Mr Samuel Matodzi, emphasised that only teams that had paid the full affiliation fee would be allowed to play their league matches. He further stated that the matches for teams not in good standing with the league when the new season started would be declared walkovers, with points awarded to their opponents. Matodzi appealed to the clubs to settle their affiliation fees timeously to allow the league ample time to print registration cards for the players.
The fixtures for the new season were also presented at the meeting. The opening matches for the 2024/25 soccer season will be played this weekend, 5 and 6 October. The meeting also agreed that the league programme would stop on 21 October and resume on 30 November to give young players time to prepare for their final examinations.
The programme will again come to a halt for the festive recess on 16 December and restart on 11 January 2025.
During the meeting, the president of the association, Mr Jabulani Ndove, presented a soccer kit to one of the affiliate clubs, Rams Sports Academy. The kit was donated to the league by a local businessman.