LILONGWE, March 22 (Xinhua) -- Malawian President Lazarus Chakwera Thursday hosted the four national teams in the Four Nations Football Tournament to a dinner ahead of the kick-off scheduled for Saturday at Bingu National Stadium in Malawian capital, Lilongwe.
The four national teams are Chipolopolo from Zambia, Harambee Stars from Kenya, Warriors from Zimbabwe and Flames from Malawi, and they are being hosted by Malawi in the first edition of the FIFA sanctioned tournament.
Chakwera said he was happy to host the four teams at the state residence in Lilongwe, and he wished them well in the Tournament scheduled to run from Saturday, March 23, to Tuesday, March 26.
The Malawian leader commended football associations from the four countries for coming up with the tournament, saying it is one way of fostering unity and strengthening bilateral ties among the four countries.
"Football unites people of different backgrounds to share in the joys and sorrows of our shared humanity," he said, and added: "What a nation invests in its sports is a reflection of how much value that nation places on its health, its unity, its sense of identity, its youth, and its place in the global village."
Chakwera further described the opportunity to host the tournament as just the beginning for Malawi, but he said Malawi's desire is to host a 24-nation Cup like the AFCON.
Football Association of Malawi (FAM) president, Fleetwood Haiya, has since extended an invitation to President Chakwera to watch the kick-off Saturday at the Bingu National Stadium in Lilongwe.
The Four Nations Football Tournament hatched in February by leaders of football associations from the four countries, on the sidelines of the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) finals in Cote d'Ivoire, according to Haiya.
The tournament will start with semifinal matches on Saturday between Flames from Malawi and Kenya's Harambee Stars in the first match, while Zimbabwe's Warriors will take on Zambia's Chipolopolo in another match on the same day.
The winners from the two semifinal matches will battle it out in a final match Tuesday, while the losing teams from the two semifinal matches will compete for the third position on the same day. ■
