After committing $2.5m to Dynamos FC, Tagwirei donates $100k to former players, coaches

Just days after committing $2.5 million (two million five hundred thousand dollars) to Dynamos Football Club, Zimbabwe’s most decorated football side, businessman Kudakwashe Tagwirei has made an additional $100,000 (one hundred thousand dollars) contribution aimed at supporting former footballers and coaches.

The donation was disclosed by ZANU-PF Youth League Deputy Political Commissar Taurai Kandishaya, who said Tagwirei provided the funds to a newly formed party-linked group known as Former Footballers and Coaches for Economic Development. Kandishaya announced the contribution while hosting members of the group at his farm in Murehwa, Mashonaland East, where he said the money would help cover basic welfare needs, including healthcare.

Tagwirei funds relief for retired athletes

In a Facebook post, Kandishaya said the gathering was held in line with President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s development agenda, adding that Tagwirei had stepped in to assist former sports professionals who had fallen on hard times after leaving the game. He said the funding was meant to provide immediate relief while helping members organize themselves economically.

Several former players and coaches used the meeting to publicly pledge support for Mnangagwa, Kandishaya said. Among the senior figures associated with the group is Sunday Chidzambwa, the former Dynamos coach who also led Zimbabwe’s national team, the Warriors, to their first Africa Cup of Nations appearance in 2004.

Tagwirei backs Dynamos with capital

The donation follows Tagwirei’s high-profile sponsorship of Dynamos through Sakunda Holdings, his privately owned company. The $2.5 million injection comes ahead of the 2026 Castle Lager Premier Soccer League season and is expected to stabilize the club’s finances.

The funding is set to cover player sign-on fees, salaries, daily operations and Dynamos’ participation in the CAF Confederation Cup later this year. Sakunda Holdings also purchased a 2025 Toyota Fortuner for Dynamos board chairperson and majority shareholder Bernard Lusengo, a move widely seen as reinforcing Tagwirei’s influence within the club’s leadership.

Influence, wealth and public questions

Beyond football, Tagwirei is one of Zimbabwe’s most influential commodities traders. Sakunda Holdings operates across fuel imports, mining, logistics and trading, supplying diesel, petrol, biofuels and kerosene to Zimbabwe, Malawi and Zambia. His business success has been closely intertwined with political power, thus drawing scrutiny at home and abroad.

Tagwirei remains under international sanctions linked to his political connections. In September 2025, sources estimated he contributed at least $2 million toward President Mnangagwa’s 83rd birthday and Munhumutapa Day celebrations in Zvishavane, including more than $240,000 spent on catering alone.

A month later, a leaked dossier accused Tagwirei and other politically connected businessmen of involvement in the alleged mismanagement of $3.2 billion in state contracts. The report claimed the diversion of public funds left hospitals under-resourced and major infrastructure projects unfinished, allegations that continue to shadow his expanding public profile.