African Champions’ League; build the parts to improve the whole

It may not be known to many Africans that Esperance of Tunisia is facing TP Mazembe of DR Congo while Egyptian Champions Al Ahly will face Sunshine Stars of Nigeria in the African Champions’ League semi finals this October.

 As usual all eyes and hearts are on the UEFA Champions league group stage. Esperence won the title last year after a seventeen year wait but they have been runners-up thrice before. TP Mazembe of DRC beat them on 6-1 aggregate in 2010 finals. Last year they beat Morocco’s Waydad Casablanca to the crown by a 1-0 aggregate.

There are many things we can take note of in this Premier CAF championships. Since 1991 only two clubs out of North and West Africa in TP Mazembe and South Africa’s Orlando Pirates have won the title. West African clubs have cut the dominance of the North Africans since 1998. Ivory Coast’s Asec Abijan, Hearts of Oak of Ghana and Enyimba of Nigeria clinching the trophy.

This says a lot about our continental championship as compared to the UEFA, or South American Copa Libertadore. Africa lags behind, even after clinching the sponsorship from mobile telephone giant Orange, little has changed. Even in the second tier Confederations Cup, Last year Club Africain of Tunisia lost to Maghreb de Fes of Morroco in the finals.

The two continental championships are a mirror of how things are bad in East, Central and Southern Africa in regards to football. This year, Eastern Africa region had three representertives in the Confederation Cup group stages; all from Sudan. Al Hilal Omdurman, El Mereikh and  Al Ahly Shendi.

First things first

First, our best players grace the foreign leagues in droves. It is every players dream to play in the UEFA champions’ league- UCL. McDonald Mariga and Samuel Eto’o are in a select contingent of African players to ever lift the UCL trophy. With Seydou Keita of Mali said to have pocketed an equivalent of Ksh. 90 million for winning the Champions League with FC Barcelona in 2010.

Our football will not grow by exporting our best talent, and no money is paid to their home federations every year from the clubs or leagues in Europe. African football will only grow at the rate which we are able to retain our best players in our local leagues. The excuse we always lack of finances to put our football at par with the rest in the world. We also acknowledge lack of depth in our organization and marketing strategies.

African football will only grow at the rate which we are able to retain our best players in our local leagues

  

EUEFA History

UEFA Champions League was not an idea of football fathers in Europe. In December 1954 French sports daily L'Equipe through their then-editor Gabriel Hanot rooted for a European-wide club competition. It is Hanot, together with colleague Jacques Ferran who came up with a blueprint for a challenge tournament to be played on Wednesdays under floodlights. The proposal was adopted by UEFA and it kicked off in 1955.

This makes it possible for a fan to fly out from London to Milan Italy to watch a Champions League match. The flight takes three hours but one hour is swallowed by time difference, so one can get a late kick off in Milan and fly back home to be at work on Thursday morning.

It initially started as a competition for clubs with massive fan base than clubs which won the league. This is something CAF officials in Cairo can look at. CAF as is the African norm copied the format for national league champions from UEFA yet they started from the most popular clubs. It is never too late to take AFC Leopards or Gor Mahia from Kenya in place of Sofapaka if that is what will make our Champions League popular in Africa.

The current UEFA format of group stages came up as a revolution in the 1992/93 season. As it is with us, CAF copy pasted the format in 1997 when it may not have been ripe for Africa. CAF could be going down a road without the backing of the African passionate fans. The most logical thing to do is to stop and re-strategize.

In South America teams qualify to the Copa Libertadores by winning half-year tournaments called the Apertura (opening) and Clausura (clossing) tournaments. This is where the national league is divided into two parts and the winners go for a playoff. Only Brazil brings teams that have finished top in their championship. The championship is growing in leaps and bounds, as more teams out of the national top flights have a chance for continental appearance.

It is good to note that TP Mazembe beat two South American  clubs, Pachuca of Mexico and Internacionale of Brazil on their way to the final with Inter Millan in 2010 FIFA Club World Cup.  This is evidence that Africa can stand up to the world in football. In 2011 Esperence bowed out after losing the first two matches.

It is never too late to take AFC Leopards or Gor Mahia from Kenya in place of Sofapaka if that is what will make our Champions League popular in Africa.

Africa is a special continent in terms of people’s diversity and economic standard disparities. We should come up with a football formula that suits us well. The media can be engaged more to report on major African leagues with the same zeal that I get to watch and read about European Leagues. Someone in Yaunde Cameroun can get to hear of FC Sofapaka before the Champions League starts.

It is time CAF looked at the reason why North and West Africans have dominated the show. Yet it is obvious that the likes of PSL of South Africa among others are good leagues as well. There could be a disconnect between what is on the ground and what CAF knows or tries to do from Cairo.

We can go the Brazilian way as a continent, where clubs play in the state leagues between January and April then go into the national championships till the end of the year. CAF can strengthen the four regional Confederations; Eastern Africa’s CECAFA, Southern Africa COSAFA, West African WAFU, Central Africa UNIFAC and North Africa’s UNAFF. CECAFA and UNIFAC both claim to serve Central Africa, something that can be sorted. The regional champions and runners up can then go into the knock out stage.

This is some sort of affirmative action to allow every region a chance of being in the group stage. It will in turn build a fan base and support from across the continent. Sponsors will be more attracted to come on board if the whole of Africa will be watching.

This will build up momentum for the continental show piece. We build the parts to assemble a worthwhile whole. It is easier for a fan to travel to Kigali from Nairobi by road or air to cheer his team. I can easily take a bus ride to Dar-es-salam or Lusaka to watch my team play than fly to North Africa.

Transport

One important hindrance to the growth of African Continental Club championship is our poor transport system. It is expensive for a fan to travel from East Africa to West Africa without connecting to Dubai or Europe. European fans can fly in and out of a country to watch a match with much ease.  Tunisia is more connected to Spain than Kenya. CAF can engage Airlines, Africa Union and Regional Economic Blocks to develop sound transport systems.

This initiative is not only bound to develop football but tourism and trade as well. When Africa interacts with itself, we can get to share ideas without waiting for a prompt from Europe. I will be glad to watch TP Mazembe play Kenyan Champions in Nairobi and maybe I can get a good excuse to savour the beauty of Lubumbashi.

UEFA and Copa Libertadores are way ahead, but we can create our own path. An appearance in UEFA even if you exit at the play offs is guarantee of income to a club. We can create a simple system where clubs get to the money bracket from the word go in regional championships. 

African Champions League can produce stars; we don’t have to wait for our players to go to Europe for the rest of Africa to know them.

Maina Kageni- Who Cares?

On Thursday 20th September on Classic FM's Maina and King'ang'i in the morning;

KINGANGI: Maina hii weekend ni kali sana Gor na AFC wanakutana kiwanjani!
MAINA: who cares....!!?

This is my tweet on 7th September 2012

kenyatta otieno ‏@stuttistician

Thanks @mwalimukingangi 4 TPL big up @mainakageni attending is not abt how U feel abt AFC/Tusker but endorsing our own ask@Carolinemutoko

Maina Kageni, with all due respect, I will write to you this open letter. I know you host one of the most listened to Breakfast Shows this side of the Sahara. Together with a man I have respect for, you hold the country captive for three good hours. To be candid, I dont own a radio so I rarely listen to your show. The few times I have caught you in a car or a matatu, minus the content, I have appreciated your chemistry and your presentation, you know your job.

I am writing this in regard to the above quotes on social media. I know you are a Manchester United fan, but who cares? My problem with you is not in your lack of appreciation of local football but in pouring cold water on King'ang'i as he tries to big up the local version of the beautiful game.

You may have grown up on the Western end of town, Who Cares? That does not mean that the Eastlands side was uninhabited. If we did not have Eastlands, how would King'ang'i have mastered his humour? He happens to be the best local talent you can work with.

I agree our football still has  a long way to go, but it is good to appreciate how far we have come. Four years ago, I started going to watch KPL matches due to the influence of two people; My good friend Eugene and your colleague Carilline Mutoko.

The terraces were empty, but a handful of us would seat through the matches undeterred. There was no entrance fee, how could you even think of charging. Someone could afford to buy everyone at the VIP stand ground nuts; but Who Cares?

Fast- Forward and you hear of clubs raising up to KSH. 5,000,000 in gate collection- TUMETOKA MBALI. Players can at least earn a decent living from playing football and corporates are back into the game. I know you don't care about all this information, BUT WHO CARES?

Football is good for the young energetic bodies from the low middle class and low class neighbourhoods. By the time they stop playing football, they are mature enough to know that crime and anti-social behaviour does not pay. It is not only you, but many like you who don't care about this fact.

Football has been used a s a social integration tool the world over. The warring factions in Ivory Coast's civil war called for a ceasefire after a football match in the rebel stronghold. Spain- a country divided by Catalonia, Basque and the Royal Spanish sectarian politics has always been held together by football. Kenya, can use this to bridge the gaps in our tribal divide, but WHO CARES?

There is no change in the world that has happened without the involvement of the middle class which you belong to Mr. Maina Kageni. It is the middle class who can transform our football, but WHO CARES. I have respect for Elly Kalekwa, this man has transformed Kenyan football, not by words, but by deeds. He has a lot of money to spend on top of the range cars and a lavish lifestyle, but HE CARED so much for the local football players that he formed SOFAPAKA FC despite being a foreigner.

Maina Kageni, Manchester United is over a century old. You are supporting it because someone cared so much for British football long before your grandfather was born. He is long gone now but you can enjoy the product of his cares. Our Mathare United, AFC Leopards', Gor and Sofapaka can be better than Manchester and Real Madrid combined if people like you cared. We have the advantage of learning from their achievements and mistakes.

I know you will say you are entitled to your opinion, oh yes Mr. Kageni. If so, the Mr. Sang could not be facing charges of crimes against humanity at the Hague, he was also airing an opinion. When you have the privilege of speaking behind a microphone to pass a message to the whole country, it is never about your opinion.

As I tweeted the tweet above; it is not always about you and how you feel. Meanwhile, we will love our Tusker Premier League as always, because people like me care less about Manchester United and such outfits.

Then again- WHO CARES, continue supporting that club that does not even know you exist. Keep watering your neighbours lawn and complain at the top of your voice that the grass is never green on your side, because WHO CARES!

Nyamweya; Let CECAFA go to Uganda

This is the second time I am writing an open letter to Sam Nyamweya; Mr. President, one of the joys of the 2002 NARC revolution was the liberalization of the term 'President'- so I am in order to call you FKF President.

                                                                Sam Nyamweya aka Sam

I have been following your exchange with Nicholas Musonye regarding the transfer of CECAFA Senior Challenge Cup 2012 from Kenya to Uganda. I can understand your frustration, I was also disappointed, as a member of the 5th Estate (we operate from the servant quarters of the fourth estate) -this was a chance to promote my blog by streaming East and Central Africa football to the world, now I will wait for the fourth estate to serve me their news.

Mr. Nyamweya, I will give you three reasons why I believe you should walk over to Nick's office- your offices are in the same compound and buy him tea. I know he loves tea, where he comes from, you must love tea before you can love other beverages. Semantics aside...

                                                             Nicholas Musonye aka Nick
                                                                                 
One; we are not guaranteed of winning the tournament on home soil. You  unveiled the natinal team coach last week, with two months to the games, I doubt if he can craft a title winning side by November. I would prefer we spend the next one year, preparing a team with a simple drill- lift CECAFA CUP on home soil. Let CECAFA Senior Challenge Cup go to Nambole for now.

Next year is a chance of a life time to showcase what Kenya has in terms of football talent and everything around our lovely people. Pwani ni Kenya na Kisumu is dala wa- so please look for ways of staging a few matches in the coastal and lakeside cities. I believe one year  is enough for us to showcase a side of Kenya that the CECAFA community has never seen. Let it Go to the hills of the Impala its only a one year wait.

Image is everything. Sam, I know you and Nick are both tough headed men, that is not a problem. That is a character than can do Kenyan football good. You are both Kenyans, so let us not wash our dirty football linen in the African public. The court of public opinion is a harsh court, it will put off sponsors and partners and hurt the beautiful game. For the sake of the good image of Kenyan football, we have come from the dark tunnel, let there be peace. Let the People of Kampala have CECAFA for this year, we can wait.

Last but not least, we can make a deal with Uganda to give us another of their slot soon, even if it is the Kagame Cup. Win-Win is made up of such.

Kwa hayo machache, Sam, let Kampala have it and by that it does not mean Nick has won. We gonna win big next year. We can plan to win the cup next year on home soil, what a better way to end this saga.

Thanking you in advance,
Yours Truly
5th Estate Tenant.