Kaizer Chiefs draws the crowds

The Kaizer Chiefs juggernaut hit town last weekend as the biggest crowd in years turned up to watch their CAF Champions League match against Namibian champions Black Africa at Windhoek’s Independence Stadium.

Not since the heady days of 1998 and 1999 when the Brave Warriors beat Bafana Bafana in the Cosafa Cup has the Independence Stadium been so full, with only some empty pockets remaining in the north and south stands. According to some reports, the 15 000 tickets that Black Africa printed for the match were sold out while an estimated 5 000 extra fans were let in free of charge after the kickoff.

What made the turnout even more remarkable was the fact that the match as a contest was basically over after Kaizer Chiefs had won the first leg in Johannesburg 3-0 the previous weekend.

According to Black Africa executive member Cassius Moetie, an ‘aggressive marketing campaign,’ contributed to the successful event, but the major drawing power of the Kaizer Chiefs brand probably played the most important role.

“We had a very aggressive marketing campaign. We were on all the radio stations each day to market the game and to sell tickets. We were consistently on TV and I always said it was not just about Black Africa but about the bigger brand of Namibian football that we were trying to sellI have added a short piece under the last section “marketing” ,” Moetie said.

“We planned the event well from the start with regular meetings between the local organising committee which was made up of representatives of Black Africa, the NPL and the NFA. We had regular meetings, a checklist of progress made and a consultative process, and that all contributed to the secret of our success,” he said.

In truth though, there were intermittent campaigns only on NBC radio and TV while their were no advertising campaigns on private radio and TV stations or the printed media.

Black Africa owner Ranga Haikali also hailed the superb co-operation between all the stakeholders, but conceded that the Kaizer Chiefs brand was the major drawing card.

“Kaizer Chiefs is a brand that attracts huge crowds in South Africa and Namibia, so that certainly helped, but the cooperation that we and African Stars got from the NFA as well as corporate Namibia was superb. We had regular meetings in terms of decisions taken and I’ve never seen such cooperation from corporate Namibia. MTC gave N$200 000, FNB gave N$100 000, the NSC gave N$50 000, while other corporates like PC Centre and Hollard Insurance also contributed,” he said.

“I think they really got good value for money, while we also invited other corporates like Bidvest Namibia and Standard Bank to attend the match. If we can get more corporates involved in some way, Namibia can go far, but there should not be an exclusion of sponsors. OTB Sport agreed to sell BA replica jerseys and had a stall at the stadium, while mini vuvuzelas from Namibia Breweries were given to the fans, so everyone can become involved,” he added.

CHIEFS’ LESSONS IN MARKETING

The amazing drawing power of Kaizer Chiefs was evident as hundreds of fans dressed up in their yellow and black colours, but Chiefs also had an active marketing campaign before and during the match.

A day before the match, Kaizer Chiefs honoured their social responsibility when they donated N$50 000 to the Children’s Cancer Ward at the Windhoek Central Hospital, while on match day there was a buzz of excitement in and around the stadium, as Chiefs officials gave replica soccer jerseys away while they also handed out membership cards.

And in another captivating gesture, four Namibian soccer legends who had played for Kaizer Chiefs in their heyday – Pius Eixowab, Lenny Narib, Oscar Mengo and Mohammed Ouseb – were honoured before the match and given special Kaizer Chiefs jerseys, with the number 44 on the back, depicting the number of years of the club’s existence.

According to Moetie, Kaizer Chiefs came up with the initiative after discussions between Chiefs and Black Africa officials before their first leg match in Johannesburg.

“We talked about the Namibian football legends that had played for Kaizer Chiefs before, so Chiefs came up with the initiative to honour them before the game. They felt they contributed a lot to the club’s success and this was an opportunity we thought both clubs cannot miss,” he said.

MOMENTUM

With the hype now having settled, the question remains as to what can be done to raise the attendance figures at local Namibian soccer matches, which are generally poorly attended and seldom number in the thousands.

Marketing campaigns and the selling of merchandise at local matches are rarely seen, while much more can also be done by clubs and their players to increase their fan bases.

Moetie said the NPL now needed to maintain the momentum to ensure that Namibia Premier League matches attract large crowds.

“I really hope we can maintain the momentum and the great turnout that we had, not just for Black Africa’s matches but for all our NPL matches. When Black Africa play African Stars they normally pull up to 8 000 people, but we can only become a footballing nation if we can pull these crowds to all NPL matches,” he said.

Haikali said the quality of Namibian football was of a high enough standard to draw the crowds.

“When I watched the NPL match between Black Africa and African Stars at the beginning of the year I was impressed by the quality of football and thought that if we can stick to that standard of football, the crowds will definitely come. That was part of our marketing strategy, but people also want some entertainment, so let us build up the hype before the match and also promise good, quality football,” he said.

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