BONGANI MALUNGA
The Botswana Football Association has all but confirmed the contract renewal of Zebras head coach Peter Butler through their midweek advertisement of his post. While many may interpret the advertisement as an open field for new applications for aspiring coaches, the fact of the matter is that the action was done to comply with work permit requirements.
Standard procedure dictates that a foreigner applying for a work permit should provide evidence that the post they desire to fill or renew was in fact advertised first to the general public, the BFA has duly obliged by advertising the post. The move is seen as a formality as Butler has already agreed a new deal with the BFA, his current deal is set to elapse at the end of this month.
This publication understands that no applications will be entertained by the BFA as they have already set their sights on prolonging Butler’s tenure. The Englishman was recruited during the Tebogo Sebego era, the current BFA administration is reportedly satisfied with Butler as the coach and BFA president Maclean Letshwiti have a mutual admiration for development. Letshwiti was responsible for bringing Jelusic Veselin to Botswana in the early 2000s and it is believed that he sees similar traits in Butler, thus the faith in keeping him.
The association has remained coy on the matter by stating that they will only make an official announcement when the time is right Despite the BFA’s reluctance to divulge information on Butler’s contract the coach has stated that a verbal agreement is already in place.
Sources claim that an official announcement from the local association is imminent as both parties have finalized the final details of the contract renewal. Butler’s Zebras side has started 2017 with a setback after a 2-0 defeat against Tanzania in an international friendly. Botswana had been inactive for almost six months due to financial problems that prevented the side from playing two friendly games before the end of last year.