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ON Thursday, former Zimbabwe international midfielder Khama Billiat became the first player to be unveiled before a big crowd and then have a dinner to cap the day’s activities at the Yadah complex in Harare.

Although he had joined them in dramatic fashion last week, Billiat’s transfer was officialised on Thursday and Yadah made sure the event stood out by even hiring musical bands to perform at the dinner.

Billiat became the most ‘expensive’ player on the domestic scene after reportedly fetching US$20 000 as sign-on fees and then received a new Landrover Discovery vehicle as part of the package and a good salary of between US$2 500 and US$3 500 although some prefer to suggest US$5 000.

That has made the transfer period look like only Billiat was transferred yet virtually every club in the Premier Soccer League signed new players ahead of the 2024 season.

League champions Ngezi Platinum Stars did a lot of business on the transfer market as did Simba Bhora, Highlanders, FC Platinum, CAPS United, Dynamos and Manica Diamonds to mention the more prominent ones.

Actually Manica Diamonds were robbed of Billiat at the very last minute as they had already agreed everything with him and he was about to sign a contract from South Africa before Yadah staged the last-minute coup.

They still managed to secure former Zimbabwe international Kuda Mahachi in another coup, this time toppling Harare giants Dynamos who at one stage were the destination for both Billiat and Mahachi.

From almost grabbing both, to being left with nothing, has made the transfer window almost a disaster for Dynamos and it puts pressure on coach Genesis Mangombe going into the new season as they do not have any fearsome players in their squad.

However, for now the domestic football scene seems overwhelmed by Billiat so much that issues concerning match venues have been put aside.

The interest in Billiat’s move has not been limited to Zimbabwean platforms alone and this is why his transfer seems to be the only transaction done.

South African football fans have been keenly following his movements. Judging from the comments on the various platforms where Billiat’s transfer has been featured, there is no denying the former Ajax Cape Town, Mamelodi Sundowns and Kaizer Chiefs player made a huge impact in his 13 years there.

Mamelodi Sundowns is where Billiat achieved his best in a five-season spell and their supporters have blamed Kaizer Chiefs for “destroying” him with their alleged poor football. A significant percentage of Kaizer Chiefs’ fans have taken to social media to ridicule Billiat’s decision to dump Amakhosi for a Zimbabwean club.

But amid the ridicule, what stands out is the regret that Billiat will no longer be part of the South African Premier Soccer League. A number of platforms have compiled videos of Billiat’s best moments during his 13 years south of the Limpopo.

Effectively, focus will now shift to his one year stay at Yadah with largely Kaizer Chiefs and Dynamos followers likely to dominate the scrutiny having been snubbed by the little magician.

That attention is what the domestic Premiership has been desperately seeking for many years now resulting in numerous experiments to try and get people to love the game again.

Interest in the domestic Premiership had been dropping but the Billiat story has turned the tables before the first round of league matches.

While critics have been questioning the wisdom of Billiat in making this move, the Castle Lager Premier Soccer League will not mind.

Previously unattractive leagues have turned to big name stars, regardless of age, to generate interest in the game and put themselves on the global media arena.

One example is the Saudi league.

It took the transfer of Cristiano Ronaldo, one of the world’s most famous soccer stars to Al Nassr FC on a two-year contract for the league to suddenly attract many big name players from various major European leagues.

The 37-year-old Ronaldo was welcomed via an extravagant ceremony in January last year and signed what is believed to be the best or highest earning football contract in the world.

After the Ronaldo transfer, a number of stars including Sadio Mane, Neymar, Firmino, Karim Benzema and Ngolo Kante, among others, abandoned big clubs like Liverpool, Bayern Munich, Chelsea and Real Madrid to take their fame to the Middle East.

Now Saudi Pro League results feature prominently on major sports news platforms in the world all because of an era started by Ronaldo’s transfer.

That is why Billiat’s move back to Zimbabwe is worth all the hype. It might just help in reviving the game both technically and financially and build a solid foundation for future national teams.