Gomwe described as "excruciating" a power outage before the West African nation of Ghana's second goal in its 2-0 defeat of the Czech Republic broadcast by state TV on Saturday.

Some bars and restaurants that have installed gas-guzzling generators charge entrance fees to watch soccer, redeemable on purchases of menu items.

Zimbabwe imports nearly 40 percent of its power from neighboring countries and has not been able to meet its arrears. Its own generating stations have been hit by breakdowns coupled with shortages of equipment, spare parts and coal.

As the spending power of the Zimbabwe currency plummets in the nation's worst economic crisis since independence in 1980, one regular bottle of local beer on Tuesday cost as much as the price of a new car a decade ago.

The main brewery said this week's price increase was forced by soaring production and delivery costs.

Official inflation is running at a record 1,193 percent, the highest in the world. The economic meltdown is largely blamed on disruptions in the agriculture-based economy since the often violent seizures of 5,000 white-owned commercial farms began in 2000 to transfer land to blacks.

Harare businessman Max Ross said he envied fellow countrymen who loved following the World Cup.

"The way things are here, at least they've got something to look forward to at the moment," he said.