From the sidelines

SOMETIMES it is really strange how football administrators run the affairs of the game in the country. Last year, in this very same column, I said the appointment of the Brave Warriors coach would not take place until a few weeks before Namibia plays in the Cosafa Castle Cup matches in July.

We are exactly in that situation and by the look of things, the appointment might only take place as we nearing that date of the match. The main reason is money.Who is going to pay the coach? Is it Government or the consortium of sponsors who are currently backing football in many respects? In fact, the consortium of companies who have committed N$40 million for football over the next five years have not mentioned allocating funds for paying a national team coach.Firstly, it was not wise for the negotiators from the NFA’s side who clinched the deal with the consortium not to realise that the national teams cannot go headless and bring in the desired results.Who will pay the coach now? Some who applied for the job have heard about the predicament in which the association finds itself and are now looking elsewhere for employment.The Government for the past few years has stuck with the N$3 million that it gives to football and does not realise the increasing costs in the modern game.The consortium of companies known as the Namibia Football Consortium (NFC), which consists of Mobile Telecommunications Limited (MTC), First National Bank (FNB) and Namibia Breweries Limited (NBL), was clever enough to steer clear from paying the salary of any coach.The football authorities should have thought of alternatives to source funding to pay this man, because the N$3 million from Government is largely spent on the various national teams – primarily training camps and matches.A single match, be it an international friendly or a competition match between Namibia and any other country, costs between N$300 000 and N$400 000.The money from Government has in any case not been sufficient to put all the national teams through proper training camps and preparatory matches.But luckily, the consortium came to the rescue of the NFA, as it now complements well in carrying some of the costs.Good and well.On the alternatives of paying the coach, the private sector will be one of the options, but the current contract by the NFA and the NFC makes that difficult as there will be a clash.The NFA has committed itself to the sponsorship agreement with the NFC that will see it getting N$8 million per year to fund all football activities in the country.This is except the payment of the national team coach.What should happen now? The only alternative as it looks, is to twist both the arms of the NFC and the Government to fork out that money because no team can go without a mentor into international matches.Another option would be to throw all the current applications for the Brave Warriors coaching job in the dustbin and start with the recruitment from scratch.This recruitment process should exclusively be for local coaches, as they would be cheaper to hire and money for the salary can even be obtained from the coffers of the association – that is, if there is any.Football administrators, the NFC and the Government should take on this fight collectively.The NFC is currently the biggest player in football and by availing some funds for this position will help, although some have not put that in their budgets.Government is the mother to this child and football being the most popular sport in the country, their contribution in making available funds will be welcomed.In any case, the administrators should put the blame squarely on their doorstep for failing to think ahead about who would foot the salary bill of the anticipated coach, while the NFC should have known better in ensuring that at least part of the money was catered for in their contribution to the game.The consortium has in fact done wonders for football so far, but now it will be their responsibility to see that this missing piece from the puzzle is found.It will in fact be good news to hear after the executive meeting in Otjiwarongo tomorrow, that a coach will be appointed at a set date and that the money will be available.The main reason is money.Who is going to pay the coach? Is it Government or the consortium of sponsors who are currently backing football in many respects? In fact, the consortium of companies who have committed N$40 million for football over the next five years have not mentioned allocating funds for paying a national team coach.Firstly, it was not wise for the negotiators from the NFA’s side who clinched the deal with the consortium not to realise that the national teams cannot go headless and bring in the desired results.Who will pay the coach now? Some who applied for the job have heard about the predicament in which the association finds itself and are now looking elsewhere for employment.The Government for the past few years has stuck with the N$3 million that it gives to football and does not realise the increasing costs in the modern game.The consortium of companies known as the Namibia Football Consortium (NFC), which consists of Mobile Telecommunications Limited (MTC), First National Bank (FNB) and Namibia Breweries Limited (NBL), was clever enough to steer clear from paying the salary of any coach.The football authorities should have thought of alternatives to source funding to pay this man, because the N$3 million from Government is largely spent on the various national teams – primarily training camps and matches.A single match, be it an international friendly or a competition match between Namibia and any other country, costs between N$300 000 and N$400 000.The money from Government has in any case not been sufficient to put all the national teams through proper training camps and preparatory matches.But luckily, the consortium came to the rescue of the NFA, as it now complements well in carrying some of the costs.Good and well.On the alternatives of paying the coach, the private sector will be one of the options, but the current contract by the NFA and the NFC makes that difficult as there will be a clash.The NFA has committed itself to the sponsorship agreement with the NFC that will see it getting N$8 million per year to fund all football activities in the country.This is except the payment of the national team coach.What should happen now? The only alternative as it looks, is to twist both the arms of the NFC and the Government to fork out that money because no team can go without a mentor into international matches.Another option would be to throw all the current applications for the Brave Warriors coaching job in the dustbin and start with the recruitment from scratch.This recruitment process should exclusively be for local coaches, as they would be cheaper to hire and money for the salary can even be obtained from the coffers of the association – that is, if there is any.Football administrators, the NFC and the Government should take on this fight collectively.The NFC is currently the biggest player in football and by availing some funds for this position will help, although some have not put that in their budgets.Government is the mother to this child and football being the most popular sport in the country, their contribution in making available funds will be welcomed.In any case, the administrators should put the blame squarely on their doorstep for failing to think ahead about who would foot the salary bill of the anticipated coach, while the NFC should have known better in ensuring that at least part of the money was catered for in their contribution to the game.The consortium has in fact done wonders for football so far, but now it will be their responsibility to see that this missing piece from the puzzle is found.It will in fact be good news to hear after the executive meeting in Otjiwarongo tomorrow, that a coach will be appointed at a set date and that the money will be available.