The chief soccer enthusiast in my family switched the channel from the nightly news to a live soccer match already in progress. He was late to the game because neither he nor our mother would compromise. Her house, her rules, you see. But also her hypertension, her triggers. With the impatience of a losing team’s coach, he barely let the news anchor say her final good nights. Our mother whines every time he switches because my brother prefers spiked blood pressure sponsored by Betway to the daily news at 19:00. As they are both soccer fans, they spend this sacred bonding time shouting at the television. My brother is louder because a last-minute goal ‘ruined an accumulator’. Bola ibaba. This is the fate of being a football fan: a gambling obsession and emotional abuse.
But there is hope.
The State’s Sport of Suffering
It is a known fact that football fanatics often develop intense emotional attachment and commitment to their teams, often times to the puzzlement of those unhypnotised by the game. With people pouring ridiculous amounts of money, time, and emotional oomph into backing their teams, the bond between fans and clubs can become concerning.
Risk-Free Football Betting Versus Reality
The reality of football being in a long-term relationship with betting cannot be overlooked. Boiling down to betting, the game offers no guarantees. Every slip you place is risky business, and several aspects determine whether the risk is small or immense. If you’ve been a fan long enough, you acknowledge how a single red card, an injury, or a 90th-minute equaliser can change everything.
Being a veteran punter means being malleable. You need to know when to pounce and how to weigh the odds. Team news, weather, tactics, travel fatigue, and so on are just some of the things you need working in your favour. Fate must really have a soft spot for you. There is no truly ‘risk-free’ bet, but disciplined betting often means you’ve:
- Disregarded emotional tactics
- Used statistical reasoning
- Checked the actual quality on both sides
- Assessed the players’ abilities in both lineups
- Stayed updated on injuries, fatigue levels, and recent form, and
- Remained disciplined instead of desperate
Such a tedious task for a game that is supposed to help us relax, don’t you think? I wonder who stresses more, the fans or the players.
Every Premier League match day, my WhatsApp contacts become generous with details about ‘fixed matches’ on their statuses. It’s easy to diagnose who will have a longer night, be irritable, or wake up blue.
Anxiety alone is not conclusively established as a direct cause of chronic hypertension. However, repeated stress responses and unhealthy coping habits associated with anxiety can contribute to cardiovascular damage over time.
People who are stressed or anxious are also more likely to adopt habits associated with high blood pressure, such as:
- smoking
- Alcohol abuse
- Overeating
While your Barbra Banda’s glide across the pitch with their athleticised bodies, you are not only risking your peace, but also placing your physical health under pressure. If you know all these things, you should write an official apology statement for the insults you rained down whenever Manchester United won. Start from all your social media platforms. We’ll forgive you as you forgive those who trespass against you.
Once all is forgiven and you are ready to turn over a new leaf, there is hope on the horizon. There are lesser-appreciated sports in Zambia that are just as enjoyable. Judo, golf and many more can offer entertaining competition without the emotional rollercoaster of a last-minute VAR decision.
Judo
Do you know that Zambia has a budding judo community? They are actually going worldwide and winning medals. At the 2026 Southern African Judo Championships, Team Zambia walked away with 52 medals, 19 of which were gold.
Unlike the highly commercialised sports environment, judo organisations maintain strict policies against doping, competition manipulation, and match fixing. As parents or seniors to a dozen siblings, why wouldn’t we promote a discipline that remains firm in the face of questionable behaviour?
Zambian sportsmen aspiring in this sport include Steven Mung’andu, who represented Zambia in the 2020 Olympics and Sasha Kapumpa, a woman judoka who brought home gold in the 2025 African Judo Open in Pretoria and is ranked 7th in Zambia.
To learn more about judo in Zambia, reach out to the Judo Association of Zambia. (Yes, we have that too.)
Motorsport
It is not NASCAR, but the adrenaline is right up there with it. Zambia’s numerous dirt roads transform into rally race tracks once a year in the Zambia International Motor Rally. Although 2025’s event was cancelled, the rally has been happening for years and has even bred some homegrown superstars, including Satwant ‘Flying Sikh’ Singh, an 8-time winner of the African Rally Championship from 1988 to 2000, and Jericho ‘King of Spin’ Moono, a champion drifter. The sport is alive and well with the Zambia Motor Sports Association organising events such as the first National Drag Race scheduled for 5th July 2026!
Basketball
Did you know basketball originally started with a soccer ball? I was today years old when I read about this. Eventually, a brown leather basketball substituted it, but it became hard to see against the floor and the players’ uniforms. That is how the now-iconic orange basketball came into existence.
Zambia’s own dunking culture is highly sophisticated, with various leagues and associations. Matero Magic is one of Lusaka’s oldest basketball clubs, founded in 1996, and they have been crowned Zambia Basketball League champions 12 times to date! Douglas Kandulu is one of Zambia’s most decorated players; a towering 220cm, he plays in the Spanish basketball leagues, and is a former Matero Magic team player, who, guess what, is sponsored by Bolabet! Do with that information what you will!
Golf
Lastly, the sport that no one can seem to explain, but anyone who’s anybody wants to try at least once, is golf. The Lusaka Golf Club is devoted to social and environmental responsibility through golf, and it promotes sustainability awareness by encouraging conservation, environmental responsibility, and community engagement among golfers and partners.
Zambia has been producing its own golf legends for years, and among them are Madalitso Muthiya, the first Zambian golfer to play in the US Open in 2006 and the first to win the Sunshine Tour. More recently, all eyes are on Sydney Wemba, a rising star in Zambian golf.
Free Yourself from Sport Suffering
With these football alternatives, you can enjoy sport for athleticism rather than gambling. You don’t deserve to watch a sporting event while calculating how much rent money disappeared in extra time. Get to know what other sports disciplines to support at home and abroad. There is a broader world of sports entertainment to be had!
