It’s the same in troubled DR Congo and their neighbouring countries, as well as in North Africa, where sponsorship solves a chunk of the financial headache of the clubs.
A lucky deal in Europe could start with as low as $3,000 a month and as high as one can imagine. Even $1,000 a month is considered good for a Ghanaian player – that is over 200 per cent the amount he would receive playing in the Ghanaian league. Overnight, the fortunes of the player will change and he can afford to have all the comforts that he could not afford as a local player.
With this situation, it should therefore not surprise anyone that players now are so keen to travel out under the guise of enhancing their careers without as much thinking of what will happen to their careers.
When the players travel abroad and are disappointed, they have regrets and may wish to return home, but the lure of the cash, which enables them to take care of their financial responsibilities, makes them not to think of doing that in a bid to relaunch their careers, even if it will restore them to their home hero status.
There are a few who tried it but their careers were never the same. At least, goalkeeper Sammy Adjei and Charles Taylor tried it but Taylor was dodged with injuries which affected his performance.
How do we make the players stay?
The solution to this problem may sound quite simple: Get more financial support for the local league to help the clubs have the clout to take good care of their players. The league is no longer run on an amateur basis and thus things must be done to reflect this status.
Ghana prides itself as having one of the best rated leagues in Africa, yet, financially, it is far from being among the best, with the low-rated sides – at least determined by the quality of play – doing far better.
How do the clubs attract needed funds? In 1990, Ghana embarked on a journey that was intended to make the Premier League clubs more professional. However, the ‘Ghanaian’ in most of the club administrators have made it impossible to reach that status. Clubs do not have structures for offices and administration. And most clubs are being run as ‘one-man’ shows, where the bankroller’s decision is final.
This certainly is not an incentive to attract corporate sponsorship that will deliver lucrative financial deals, hence the clubs have no choice but to accept whatever sponsorship package the Ghana Football Association (GFA) is able to secure.
The sale of television rights may have brought some relief to the teams but the gains are nothing compared to what say the South African league gets.
In South Africa, the league clubs, apart from the corporate sponsorship, also earn about $100,000 for television rights so they are able to spend on recruitment, that’s why they are able to travel to Ghana to secure the services of players they find good enough.
About three years ago, the South Africa Premier Soccer League (PSL), Ghana’s equivalent of the Premier League Board (PLB), signed a R1.6-billion television contract which took it into the top 15 ranked leagues in the world in terms of commercial broadcast deals.
SuperSport International is the exclusive rights owner to show local football matches on television. The Premier Soccer League (PSL) is reported to be receiving double its revenue as a result of its five-year broadcasting deal with the pay TV channel.
The rights to air local matches for five years brings in more than R1.5 billion, giving the league at least R300 million a year.
In Ghana, the FA makes about $400,000 a year on its television rights for the coverage of the Premier League. That money is paid in tranches and is shared by all the 16 clubs.
The main sponsorship provided by Glo is $3million per season and has been running for the past five years, but all the parties involved will agree that it has been a tumultuous relationship which would have been severed had another deal been easily secured. The money is never paid in full and even with the tranches, it has to be renegotiated. Instead of helping the clubs, they end up spending more as loans they contract from the banks almost always attract interests.
Apart from Kotoko, Hearts, Ashgold and, to some extent, Medeama, the other premier league clubs do not have any sponsors and thus rely on their own initiative or what they are able to derive from the sponsorship package and the transfer of players.
It is not easy to get packed-to capacity stadium for most local league matches. And there are many reasons for this. However, if sponsorship and other deals are good, that could solve that problem. Afterall, in South Africa, apart from Sundowns Orlando Pirates or Kaizer Chiefs matches, just as Heart versus Kotoko games in Ghana, the other matches do not attract huge patronage but the South African clubs do not suffer financially because they have the sponsorship and tv rights to fall back on.
Perhaps, the stakeholders in Ghana football and, in this case, the GFA Congress, must push for a law that allows players to play actively in the local league for at least three years before they are transferred.
In the case of those who must go at all cost, the clubs must push for a clause in the agreement contract that assures the player of regular playing time.
Indeed, if the clubs mean well for the player, this should not be too much to be asked for. There are several players from other countries who are pushing for such assurances before renewing their contracts.
In the past there was an attempt to introduce this, but the clubs kicked against it, saying it infringed on the rights of the player.
Not everyone is cast in the mould of the Neymars, the Lionel Messis, the Cristiano Ronaldos who will make instant hits anywhere they find themselves but for the sake of the future of the players, it is important to have some guidelines.
It’s time for clubs to have deep soul-searching over the issue. Yes, players will always want to travel out as the first option, but once they are made aware of the rules, they certainly will play by them.
Yes, family members and other hangers-on may put pressure on clubs to let their wards go in search of greener pastures when such offers come but they must be made aware of the dangers that come with such demands. The players will go if they must, but it must be a move that will be of benefit to all – the player, the club and, eventually, the country.
It is time for every stakeholder to help stop this cycle of destruction of talent. It is a cagey situation but there should be a way out as it has been more than proved that the current situation is not in the interest of either the player or Ghana.
If the trend is allowed to continue, the local game will not be the only loser. The players will be forced into premature retirement and for those who do not have strong educational background to build upon, will be pushed to a life of hassling and struggling.
This is the concluding part of ROSALIND K. AMOH’s article on Ghanaian players. The first part was published in the Monday Special Edition.
Graphic Sports/graphic.com.gh/Ghana
