http://www.modernghana.com/sports/534487/2/how-fifa-can-help-make-african-football-better.html
*Sports News* | 9 April 2014 Last updated at 10:40 CET
How FIFA can help make African football better
African football is going to get help, whether it wants it or not. At a
FIFA seminar in Johannesburg, South Africa, last week, the organisation's
secretary general, Jerome Valcke, promised not only $900 million for
various development projects around the continent, but also an increased
focus on assisting Africa in professionalising its game, from
infrastructure to governance.
Twenty-six African countries were present at the three-day event and some
of the recipients have welcomed FIFA's offer. South African Football
Association CEO Dennis Mumble called it a "wonderful project," while
Ghana Football Association president Kwesi Nyantaki said the conference was
a "huge success for the development of the game in Africa."
http://www.sowetanlive.co.za/sport/2014/04/04/thumbs-up-for-fifa
http://www.businessghana.com/portal/sports/news.php?op=getNews&id=41047&cat=1
If the benefits pay off as planned, Valcke hopes to see an African World
Cup finalist "soon."
http://www.fifa.com/aboutfifa/footballdevelopment/news/newsid=2313785/
With that in mind *Football
Africa *takes a look at the two things FIFA should prioritise in the near
future.
*Total member participation*
Most teams have a mantra that they will improve only by playing more. Apart
from the odd friendly, national fixtures are largely confined to
qualifications for either the African Nations' Cup (ANC) or the World Cup
and not everybody can afford to or has the resources to play.
Already two countries have indicated they will not be on the road to ANC
2015. Malawi's government has given their FA a choice between funding the
national side or a youth side and all signs are that they will choose the
youngsters. Initially, Malawi's FA confirmed they would pull out of the ANC
qualifiers, but then said they are searching for a sponsor to try to take
part. Eritrea have withdrawn without reason
http://www.bbc.com/sport/0/football/26544928 , although it is strongly
suspected defection of 17 squad members has something to do with their
unavailability. During qualifying for the 2013 edition of the competition,
Swaziland
http://www.mtnfootball.com/africa/swaziland/news/2011/dec/30-swaziland-withdraw-from-2013-afcon-qualifiers.html
and Benin
http://www.bbc.com/sport/0/football/26544928 both pulled out for financial
reasons.
http://en.africatopsports.com/2013/07/01/chan-benin-withdraws/
At club level, the same thing has happened with the CAF Champions League.
This year Steve Biko FC from Gambia could not participate because they did
not have the money.
While FIFA cannot subsidise every national and club team, they can monitor
where the grants they provide to their members go. A new independent audit
and compliance unit is set to do just that, with random assessments for
various nations. Perhaps it should not be so random. The countries who have
struggled to meet commitments in the past should be the first ones whose
books are examined, and if they need help with financial management, FIFA
could provide it.
It would also be worth examining CAF's regulations for the Champions
League. Currently, they stipulate that the host team must pay for the
visitors' and the match officials' transport and accommodation. Often this
is not sustainable and FIFA may have a recommendation that could assist
teams who cannot afford this to still take part in the competition.
*Education and sanctions*
Some teams have no problem getting themselves on the field, but mess things
up when they are there. Cape Verde, Ethiopia, Equatorial Guinea and Burkina
Faso were docked 2014 World Cup qualifying points
http://espnfc.com/blog/_/name/footballafrica/id/898?cc=3888 for fielding
ineligible players during their campaigns.
The first two of those countries allowed players who should have been
suspended to take the field, the other two let men they thought qualified
to represent them play when, in fact, the players did not meet the required
criteria. Either the teams were guilty of brazen cheating, in which case
they should face harsh FIFA sanctions, or their record-keeping and
understanding of the rules went awry.
FIFA can help with both. Through CAF, if need be, they can create a
database of players who are suspended which can be accessed easily. They
can also involve themselves in overseeing the process of naturalising
players who are born in one country and choose to play for another. If
these things are taken care of before game time, teams will not have to
lose matches they should have won and those who are good enough to qualify
for major tournaments, will.
There is much more than just these things that needs to be done in Africa --
leagues must be professionalised, shady agents found and punished, and
equipment and facilities improved. But the above pair would be a good start
to taking what's already there and improving on it.
For more Ghana football news visit www.ghanasoccernet.com
Received on Wed Apr 09 2014 - 10:39:19 EDT