Published by the government of Zimbabwe
Petros Kausiyo
4 July 2009
Harare — PREMIERSHIP clubs, their viability under severe threat, are expected to converge in the capital this morning to review the first half of the 2009 season and find ways of guaranteeing their sustainability in a tough operating environment.
Despite every team having managed to fulfil their opening 15 matches of the year, it has not been an easy ride with just about every club revealing that they have faced problems which are largely of a financial nature.
The clubs and their management committee are also aware that they face another difficult second half of the term and it is against this background that today's indaba at St Lucia park in Marlborough is expected to come up with some solutions.
It should not be an occasion that should be spent on blame games between the Tapiwa Matangaidze management committee and the clubs' chiefs but it should be a day on which the elite league's leadership could demonstrate their maturity and define meaningful ways to steer the domestic game out of its current problems.
Matangaidze and his team are aware that they would still to need to secure a sponsorship deal that will guarantee that the teams will at the end of the year walk away with something in their pockets for all their industry.
The league's sponsors from last year -- CBZ Holdings -- although not committing themselves to any figures have not effectively ended their marriage with the PSL amid indications that they could still bankroll the Premiership.
PSL secretary-general Kenny Ndebele last night acknowledged that the issue of the club's viability was likely to dominate debate at the indaba.
But Ndebele expressed satisfaction with the manner the teams had acquitted themselves in the first half of the season with every game reaching its logical conclusion.
Ndebele was, however, not at liberty to be drawn into discussion on the league's sponsorship, preferring instead to only confirm that two cup competitions -- the Charity Shield and the ABC Super8 -- would be staged in the second half of the season.
"It (the meeting) is a general review of the first half in which every club played 15 matches.
"We are going to look at the problems being faced by the clubs. We will also have a separate meeting with Underhill who feel they are playing away in every game and that it has worsened their plight," Ndebele said.
Basement club Underhill have since their promotion into the top-flight last year been forced to use Mucheke as their home ground because none of the stadiums in Beitbridge are suitable for the top-flight game.
Ndebele said the clubs would also discuss the pricing of tickets after some teams proposed am increase from the current US$2 to US3 for the rest of the ground.
"One or two clubs have asked for the re-introduction of children's tickets, others have requested for US$3 tickets.
"Others want to be allowed to charge US$1 for the rest of the ground and we will debate all that".
The Premiership, Ndebele said, would also try and use today's indaba to clarify the criteria that will determine Zimbabwe's representatives in the Caf Confederation Cup following CBZ's decision to withdraw their sponsorship of the FA Cup.
Winners of the FA Cup have in the last three years represented Zimbabwe in the continental game's second tier knockout competition with the Premiership kings earning the ticket to represent the country in the African Champions league.
Ndebele revealed that the clubs would have to brace for an increase in the security charges from the Zimbabwe Republic Police.
"ZRP have proposed to charge US$3 per hour, we had been paying them a minimum charge of the ticket and it was slightly adjusted with the ranking.
"What they are proposing now is a flat rate which means that the highest paid officer on duty at the matches would be earning US$11 per hour.
"Referees have also proposed an increase in their match fees but clubs are struggling to meet all these costs and the meeting will table all these issues".
Ndebele said although they were seriously concerned with the viability of the clubs, they had also noted that most of the teams had been affected by the full dollarisation of the economy.
Zimbabwe's economy adopted the use of multi-currencies in February but by the time it came into effect most clubs had negotiated and concluded salary perks with their players between November and December last year.
Some teams also splashed an average of US$5 000 signing on fees per player, which later affected their budgets.
"League sponsorship will no doubt be discussed at the meeting. We are seriously concerned that viability problems are affecting every business and we are going to try and find ways to alleviate these problems and perhaps one way would be through reorganisation.
"It must also be noted that most of the clubs negotiated players' salaries between November and December last year but after dollarisation, clubs began to feel the pinch so we have to also find ways of having realistic salaries although this remains the prerogative of the individual teams.
"Though it is the management committee's mandate to look for sponsorship, clubs can also look for technical sponsors and partners who can help take care of some of their costs such as camping, travel salaries or bonuses.
"That would also help raise the profile of the league, which I believe remains very competitive despite the challenges being faced".
Ndebele said the fact that Dynamos and Monomotapa had in the last two years reached the African Champions League mini-league phase, highlighted the quality of the local game.
"That you have PSL champions qualifying for the mini-league and you have your players walking straight into a team like Kaizer Chiefs shows that there is something good coming from our league and that it is not all gloomy as some people may want to put it," said Ndebele.
The PSL secretary-general was, however, not amused by some clubs who have opted to use the mid-season break to play friendly matches arguing that it was against the spirit of giving players a rest they deserved before the resumption of the second half of the season next weekend.
But with viability being the key issue, the clubs would also have to discuss whether such avenues like touchline advertising and television rights are really generating revenue directly into their coffers.
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