Premier Soccer League referee Quedsani Dirwai has been suspended by the Zimbabwe Football Association (ZIFA) for the second time in just over a year after his officiating came under scrutiny in another controversial league match.
ZIFA has also suspended fellow PSL referee Magare Mhaka, with both officials barred from officiating PSL matches for six matchdays, from Matchday 27 to Matchday 32.
According to a ZIFA statement issued on Friday, the sanctions followed reports submitted by match commissioners over matches officiated by the two referees on August 1, 2026. Dirwai was sanctioned over the Scotland FC versus MWOS FC encounter at Rufaro Stadium, while Mhaka was punished following the FC Platinum versus Simba Bhora match at Mandava Stadium.
ZIFA said the match commissioners had identified incorrect decisions that were deemed to have influenced the outcomes of the respective matches.
The latest suspension puts Dirwai back in the spotlight, coming just over a year after he was handed another six-match ban by ZIFA.
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In July 2025, Dirwai was suspended for Matchdays 18 to 23 following his handling of the controversial FC Platinum versus Dynamos match at Mandava Stadium on June 22, 2025. ZIFA's review, which included the match commissioner's report, concluded that his performance fell short of the professional standards expected at Premier League level.
That match was abandoned in the 75th minute after Dirwai awarded FC Platinum a penalty, with Dynamos players walking off the pitch in protest. He had ruled that Dynamos captain Emmanuel Jalai had fouled Oscar Bhebhe inside the penalty area. The match was level at 1-1 at the time.
The 2025 suspension was imposed under Paragraph 21 of the ZIFA Referees Code of Conduct as a corrective and disciplinary measure.
Dirwai's name had already been associated with controversy in the weeks before that suspension. During the 2025 season, he was involved in another abandoned match after awarding a late penalty to Scotland against Chicken Inn, according to contemporary reports.
The latest case, however, represents a fresh disciplinary action rather than a continuation of the 2025 sanction. ZIFA said the two officials' decisions in the August 1 matches were serious enough to warrant six-match suspensions under Article 22 of the association's Referees Code of Conduct.
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