Safa offered Bafana games to the SABC ‘at a cut rate’

The South African Football Association (Safa) gave the SABC every opportunity to broadcast Saturday’s 1-1 draw between Bafana Bafana and Nigeria‚ but the SABC declined.

Safa said the 2019 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Nigeria at the FNB Stadium in Soweto‚ plus the Mandela Challenge match against Paraguay at the Moses Mabhida Stadium in Durban on Tuesday night‚ had been offered to the SABC at a cut rate.

“Safa wishes to apologise to the nation and the footballloving public for the fact that the SABC failed to broadcast the Bafana Bafana vs Nigeria Afcon qualifier,” it said.

“Safa had taken the initiative to seek a resolution to the impasse as early as the first week of November‚ and made the SABC an offer to broadcast the Bafana vs Nigeria and the Nelson Mandela Challenge‚ by attempting to conclude a match-by-match agreement.

“In this instance‚ Safa offered the matches to the SABC for a rights fee of R10m. The SABC declined this offer.

“Safa then continued to engage the SABC‚ in the hope that it would be able to ensure that the nation had an opportunity to watch the match on SABC.

“In this regard‚ Safa then took the initiative to reduce its rights fee request from the original R10m to R7.5m.

“Again the SABC declined this gesture made by Safa.

“Late last [Friday] evening‚ discussions continued‚ and the SABC indicated it wanted to broadcast the match‚ but did not have the funds available.

“Safa again conceded to the SABC that it was willing to negotiate a payment plan‚ in the interest of ensuring that the nation would be able to watch the match.

“However‚ the SABC failed to answer this request in writing by [Saturday morning].

“Later in the day‚ prior to the match‚ approaches were again made via the ministry of communications‚ requesting Safa to allow the SABC to broadcast the match‚ and that operationally the parties would resolve the payment structure post the match.

“Again Safa agreed to this process‚ and immediately authorised Caf/Supersport to release the feed to the SABC.

“To Safa’s surprise‚ it noted that the match was not being broadcast on the SABC.

“Safa has done everything humanly possible to afford the SABC the opportunity to broadcast the match.

“It therefore saddens Safa that there is no consideration for the public‚ and the persistence by the SABC of supporting foreign football and entities with the SA taxpayers’ money is depriving the football-loving public of their right to watch their national team.”

The SABC issued its own statement stating that it had made a “commercially viable offer” that was rejected by Safa.

“The South African Broadcasting Corporation would like to place on record that it made a commercially viable offer that would enable it to deliver football matches to South African audiences on SABC platforms and that this offer was rejected by Safa‚” it said.

“This followed the expiry of the previous contract between Safa and the SABC.

“The high cost of sports rights [and] low revenues have played a critical role in the solvency of the corporation.

“The offer put to Safa for a new agreement was based on the revenue the SABC has made on the sports rights.

“Furthermore‚ the offer excluded the full production costs and marketing costs the SABC would incur in the broadcast of matches.

“Safa matches have not traditionally drawn any fans to stadiums‚ with stadiums generally being less than a quarter filled.

“The SABC has played a critical role in profiling our national football teams despite empty stadiums by broadcasting on the biggest television platform, namely SABC1.

“It is unfortunate that the SABC and Safa legal dispute is in the public domain‚ but the SABC remains committed to engaging Safa on fair terms.”

Safa and the SABC have been deadlocked in negotiations to renew their broadcast contract.

The association has said it has rejected an offer from the cash-strapped public broadcaster of R10m‚ down from last year’s R110m. –