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The Premier Soccer League (PSL) is once again playing a patriotic role for a national cause.
City Press has learnt that the start of next season’s Absa Premiership campaign will be delayed by a few weeks to make an allowance for the South African national Under-23 participation at the Rio Olympics in Brazil in August.
The football tournament at the 2016 Olympics is scheduled to be held from August 3 to 20.
The delay of the soccer calendar kickoff will afford coach Owen Da Gama the latitude to choose whichever players he wants, particularly older players, if he so wishes, and also have a lengthy camp.
Every country can select three overaged players, but Da Gama has not indicated if he will exercise this option or not.
The issue of the late start of the 2016/17 season was raised and discussed at last week’s Board of Governors meeting, but it had not been finalised.
A source within the league said they first wanted to check with their broadcast sponsors and cup sponsors if they agreed to the proposal.
“Negotiations are at an advanced stage and an announcement is imminent,” said the insider.
Usually the league gets under way in the first week of August with either the MTN8 tournament or league fixtures.
Last year, the league suspended its fixtures for four weeks to accommodate SA’s participation in the CAF Under-23 Championship in Senegal.
Da Gama’s side will face Japan in an international friendly during June as part of preparations for the Games.
The team will also represent the country at the Cosafa tournament in Namibia, but will go there as Bafana Bafana.
They are also likely to play one more friendly in Brazil before the beginning of the tournament.
They are in Group A with the hosts, Iraq and Denmark.
. Meanwhile, Banyana Banyana, who are also going to Rio, have a date with another Rio-bound southern African country – Zimbabwe – this afternoon at Makhulong Stadium in Tembisa.
Vera Pauw’s team has also lined up the Netherlands in two friendly matches next month as part of their preparations. They are also likely to play the US on their way to Rio in July, but the details of the match are sketchy.
