Tommy Sithole Special Correspondent
THE Zimbabwe Olympic Committee, in their wisdom, appointed me to represent the organisation at the ZIFA General Assembly which elected into office the Philip Chiyangwa-led executive. In my short remarks before the elections, I reminded the Councillors to “do the right thing” and elect into office a person who would bring back sanity to our football.

Zimbabweans were tired of the circus in their most popular sport and the football association was reeling under such a massive debt the cries from the leaders were clear — only Government funding could rescue them.

So when my friend Philip Chiyangwa was elected over two other friends of mine I thought, as indeed he was to repeat over and over again, his business acumen would take over and money would flow into football — if he did the right thing.

The right thing here, in my limited experience running sport at the highest levels in the world, would have been to sort out the administration first.

Probably the most important thing in sport today is good governance. As I had told the Councillors at the election meeting, Sepp Blatter, a man I’ve known since 1978, was not being charged for corruption by the Swiss authorities, as is popularly believed.

Blatter is being charged with “criminal mismanagement” and “misappropriation.” The authorities might yet bring other charges but for now issues of good governance dominate investigations against this gentleman.

I did a bit of marketing, followed and practiced sports marketing during my tenure as director at the International Olympic Committee.

Every director, every senior person at major sports organisations MUST understand sports marketing and are expected to be brand managers.

When I saw ZIFA veering off the normal marketing tenets by considering cash offerings from Wicknel Chivayo, I thought the train was about to go off the rails when statements were made to the effect that the money was being offered not to ZIFA but the President of the Association who had total control and could do whatever he wished with it.

Now, this is NOT sports marketing, as I was to tell another audience in Harare.

There is a big difference between donations and sponsorship. Unfortunately, the Zimbabwean tendency is to lump both in the same basket.

Donations are the kind of offerings Chivayo was handing out to ZIFA through Chiyangwa. Sponsorships are different.

They are a function of marketing.

One gives and demands to know exactly, and in writing, what they should expect in return.

Coca Cola, Visa, Toyota, Samsung know exactly what they get in return for the billions, not millions, of dollars they pour into the IOC.

Same as those others who fund FIFA, CAF and all other major sports organisations.

That is marketing.

In between those marketing deals are donors for specific projects but whose names are hardly mentioned.

I managed millions of dollars in donations from commercial entities, benevolent individuals and foundations in my time.

These funds were aimed at alleviating the suffering of old athletes who had fallen on hard times, value-based education for young people, environment, women and girls and HIV and AIDS programmes.

The crucial element in both sponsorship (marketing) and donations is that the Association, in this case ZIFA, and donors and sponsors MUST have shared values.

That is the starting point in a sponsorship deal.

It is for that reason that the IOC will never accept sponsorship from an alcohol producing company.

The Olympic Games are based entirely on youth and have a very strong education and mentoring element.

I guarantee you UEFA and Heineken have found each other in the values they subscribe to and it is the basis upon which their partnership is based.

It, therefore, frightens the wits out of some of us when the President of (the-so-called) NAFAZ tells Parliament he does not care who gives him the money, or something to that effect.

Excuse me.

Even drug lords and diamond smugglers?

I, therefore, beg to differ.

Then there is this change from ZIFA to NAFAZ. Innovative, I agree. But is it legal and acceptable in sport?

I’m not a legal expert.

However, common sense did not quite seem to prevail when the switch was considered. Again I make my judgment from reading newspapers.

Many questions come to mind, not least, how did ZIFA, breathing their last, decide therefore to ban certain individuals for life?

How did they hold substantive elections without going through the normal process of affording every aspiring candidate opportunities to put forward their names?

How do they so casually “disown” the debts and other liabilities but keep the assets of the supposedly defunct Association?

So we are not required to start the registration process again with continental and international organisations?

And they are fully aware that the sole reason we have graduated from ZIFA to NAFAZ is so we don’t have to donate our FIFA-prescribed financial obligations to a previous coach, to staff and to local suppliers?

Patrick Chinamasa should take a leaf off the books of these guys.

Convince us to change the country’s name to Azambezi and we squash two birds with one stone. First we get to sit in front in every conference (where the seating is in alphabetical order) leaving Zambia alone at the back there, having previously been abandoned by Zaire.

Secondly, our multi-billion dollar national debt goes out of the window.

My second beef with these ZIFA/NAFAZ characters is that a couple of months ago they made song and dance about signing a multi-million dollar “sponsorship” deal, $100 million, to be exact, with, a United Arab Emirates company called Total Sports Marketing.

Not that I ever believed this pie in the sky but the fact that this deal was signed with much pomp and pageantry barely three months ago and we, as football lovers, supporters and followers are supposed to have already forgotten about it makes me somewhat angry.

ZIFA is supposed to have gone down due to a $6million debt. Yet there’s a $100 million income in the pipeline and ZIFA just can’t negotiate for a delay in payment?

Unless, of course, they are taking us for the gullible lot they think this nation are.

By the way, does it mean that Total Sports Marketing can now get off the hook because the entity with which they signed the deal no longer exist?

I still give Fidza the benefit of the doubt.

He talks money in the millions. He has a more superior house than mine. He drives incredibly expensive cars that most of us can only ever dream of owning.

He’s an accomplished businessman.

What he also has, judging by the decisions past, are a bunch of dimwits for advisers in sports administration.

Tommy Ganda Sithole is one of Zimbabwe’s leading sports administrators and is currently the secretary-general of the Association of National Olympic Committees of Africa having worked at the International Olympic Committee as a director for years. He writes in his personal capacity

You Might Also Like

Comments

Take our Survey

We value your opinion! Take a moment to complete our survey