GRIEF has swept through Zimbabwe women’s football fraternity following news that Nelia Musikavanhu, the woman behind Faith Drive Soccer Academy, has died.
Musikavanhu succumbed to a short illness at a Mutare hospital in the early hours of Thursday. A herbalist by trade, she leaves behind six children, Edith, Dumisani, Tsitsi, Skathele, Zenzele and Siphelani, and will be laid to rest in Mutare on Saturday.
Word of her death has since triggered a wave of tributes from figures who credit her with single-handedly altering the trajectory of the women’s game in Zimbabwe, particularly for young girls in Manicaland who once had nowhere to turn.
The Zimbabwe Women Premier Soccer League has since led the outpouring of grief, describing her death as a significant loss to the women’s game nationally. The league acknowledged Faith Drive’s outsized role in shaping the competitive landscape of the ZWPSL, noting that few, if any, institutions have contributed as many players to the top flight as the Mutare-based academy. Officials within the league described Musikavanhu as one of the foundational figures whose work over three decades helped legitimise women’s football at a time when it received little institutional support.
Former ZWPSL chairperson Theresa Maguraushe was among the first to speak out, hailing Musikavanhu as a towering figure whose contribution went well beyond football administration.
“Today I mourn the loss of a gallant heroine, Ms Nelia Musikavanhu,” Maguraushe said.
“Gogo Nelia was the owner of Faith Drive Soccer Academy, a visionary, a trailblazer, and a mother to many.”
According to Maguraushe, Musikavanhu’s greatest gift was her willingness to champion a cause that many had overlooked entirely.
“I thank her for believing in Women’s Football when few did. She gave the girl child belief, dignity, and a place to call home. Through Faith Drive, she opened doors that were once closed and proved that talent in Mutare, in Manicaland, and across Zimbabwe deserves a chance to shine,” she said.
She went further, framing Musikavanhu’s contribution as something structural, a pipeline that continues to sustain the league itself.
“I am forever grateful for the sacrifice she poured into the women’s game. She built more than a club. She built a conveyor belt of hope. There is no team in the ZWPSL today that has not been touched by a player who came through Faith Drive.”
Maguraushe ended her tribute on a note of reverence.
“Today I salute her for the lives she touched, the careers she launched, and the future she secured for the girl child. Gogo, let your legacy live forever. May your dear soul rest in peace.”
Similar sentiments came from within Musikavanhu’s own household. Her son, Dumisani Sithole, a former ZWPSL vice-chairperson who has since taken over as chairperson of the academy, described Faith Drive as a mission the family intends to keep alive.
“Gogo’s Musikavanhu’s vision and leadership is going to be carried out by us, the kids, since it was a family project led by and founded by Gogo in the early 1990s to date,” Sithole said.
Sithole traced his mother’s love of sport back to her schoolgirl days as a netball player, long before Faith Drive existed even as an idea.
“She had a passion, actually into sports as a former netballer from school. She grew up with that passion, the sport here. You can pick talent from one hour, because when she came here, there was no talent in sports, specifically football. That’s how it started, developing the talent here, and especially the girl child,” he said.
He echoed Maguraushe’s assessment almost word for word, underlining just how far the academy’s reach now extends.
“It’s the development hub for ZWPSL. There’s no team in the league without a player who passed through the conveyor belt,” he said.
For the family now preparing to bury her, sorrow and pride sit side by side.
“In mourning our mother we are paying tribute to her, she will be remembered for opening doors for the girl child in football in Manicaland and nationally,” Sithole said.
Two voices, one from league leadership and one from her own blood, arrived at the same conclusion: Nelia Musikavanhu did not merely start a soccer academy in Mutare. She carved out space, in a sport that had none to spare, for girls who had nowhere else to go. Her burial takes place in Mutare on Saturday.
