Players’ union blasts BFA
The Footballers Union of Botswana (FUB) has said the Botswana Football Association (BFA) has constantly failed players as local football remains on the sidelines. The government recently announced the further suspension of sports due to the rising number of coronavirus (COVID-19) cases.
At the time of the announcement, there was no clear communication from the association relating to the start of the season, only that if things went well, they would start the season this month. The BFA has constantly used the government’s position as one of the reasons football has been sidelined. However, the FUB has said that is a clear sign of failure from the association in dealing with the matter.
“Every time we raise these issues with them, they refer us to the government’s position, but our concerns are not there yet. What we want to know is, in the event we are to resume playing, what is in place from the health protocols, the status of the commencement of the leagues or its readiness to start the league, do we have sponsorships and what is the competition structure? Our president was part of a task force that was to develop a bounce back report supported by UEFA.
We need this report to appreciate what can be done to save football going forward,” FUB secretary-general, Kgosana Masaseng said.
He pointed out that the FUB has been communicating mostly with the BFA as the custodian of the game about the need to clear certain things. He said from an operational point of view, the BFA is the only body that takes all suggestions and proposals to both the Botswana National Sport Commission (BNSC) and the parent ministry. He said the BFA is the one that should demonstrate readiness to return to play after satisfying the requirements from the BNSC.
“That being the case, we have been trying to secure a meeting with the ministry to try and state our case as football players who are badly affected by the absence of football activity. We remain hopeful that they would revert to us soon,” he said.
Masaseng said lack of information on the part of those administering the game has a huge impact on their membership generally, as some players’ contracts have come to an end, others seeking new employment and clubs have been reluctant to take part in the transfer market as a result of
this uncertainty. FUB is currently running an online campaign which is pushing for the return of football. Masaseng said the campaign came about after players made suggestions to the board in terms of dealing with challenges facing football today.
He said one of the resolutions was that players wanted to talk about their frustrations and that is how the campaign was conceptualised. “It is about highlighting the challenges faced by players who have not been able to play the game for over a year now,” he said.
He added the situation with players is very bad as some have not been paid for over two years. He added that, way before COVID-19, some of the players were already living on the edge. “Since we had transitioned into a semipro status, some players were forced to only focus on football for survival. When everything stops in football, it means players will be badly affected as they do not have proper support systems.
There is also a great risk of career-ending injuries once we return without a standard guideline on resuming to competitive football,” Masaseng said. He added that FUB is currently dealing with issues ranging from broken families, shattered dreams, to getting support systems for their members. He said the situation is so bad that several players have been lost to being retired early.
This is why we put emphasis on developing a solid psychosocial system way before we even get back to playing football. We need to speak to the minds of these players who feel helpless. There is a need to start all over again to rebuild football and the time is now,” he said.
He said the FUB is asking itself whether football people are giving a compelling case to the government to push for a return to play. He also said they are wondering whether football people are talking to the right structures that make decisions on what hap
pens in the country. “These are the questions that we are asking ourselves. We say this because other sectors have been able to operate and we too must be able to put a compelling case to return to play.
How do you justify opening up for teams in CAF competitions and the national teams, and leave out professional football? What is it that these teams are doing that the rest of the teams cannot do?” Masaseng wondered. During the recent announcement of the suspension of sports, the government exempted national teams from the ban.