About ten days before the scheduled friendly match against South Africa in Mbabane, Swaziland has parted ways with its coach, Valère Billen. The decision to terminate Billen’s contract with immediate effect was announced by the Swaziland National Football Federation (NFAS) on Tuesday.
The NFAS cited the instability of the Belgian coach, who has been spending more time in Belgium than in Swaziland, as the reason for the decision. Adam Mthethwa, president of the NFAS, explained, “The NFAS withdrew the offer to renew the contract of coach Valère Billen, for simple reasons. He has some problems at home in Belgium and commitments that need his attention. He’s more out of the country than in. An incompatibility with its function. Because we want a full-time coach to focus on the team for qualification for CAN 2015.”
Valère Billen had been in charge of Sihlangu since August 29, 2012, leading Swaziland to success in the Cosafa Cup and the final round of qualifiers for CHAN (eliminated by Angola).
In the interim, Harris Bulunga will take charge, including overseeing the match against Bafana Bafana on November 15.
