‘PSL not going back on club licensing’
THE Premier Soccer League (PSL), which is celebrating its 25th anniversary, has set its sights on establishing viable clubs through implementation of the Fifa Club Licensing system.
PSL chief executive officer Kennedy Ndebele said they do not habour interests in diversifying and acquiring their own broadcasting equipment.
“We’re celebrating 25 years of existence and this is a huge milestone. We’ve had numerous, fruitful relations with the corporate sector over the years and have seen clubs coming into the league and others going defunct after being relegated. The Premier Soccer League’s thrust at the moment is to ensure Club Licensing is fully implemented so that clubs become viable entities. We wouldn’t want to jump and take after the EPL (English Premier League) which does its own productions,” said Ndebele.
“We have no plans to invest in an OB van now. Currently the league has other priority areas. Furthermore, the general public is still inclined towards free to air broadcasting. We may review the position after the current digitalisation programme, but what is key to note is that our focus is on fully implementing Club Licensing,” he said.
There have been complaints in the past few weeks about the league failing to record matches for archival purposes.
A fortnight ago, Yadah FC beat Ngezi 1-0 courtesy of a well struck free kick by former Bulawayo Chiefs and Bulawayo City left-back Brian Briya Chikwenya. Unfortunately, very few witnessed Chikwenya’s curler, which gave Ngezi goalkeeper Nelson Chadya no chance, as there was no video recording of the match. This means only the few fortunate that saw the goal at the stadium can debate about it being a contender for the goal of the year title.
On the same weekend, ZPC Kariba’s Talent Chamboko struck a beauty from 20 metres out when his side lost 2-3 to Highlanders at Barbourfields Stadium.
Chamboko’s volley, an early contender for goal of the year, silenced the home team’s supporters.
A clearance from Raphael Manuvire’s corner went straight to Chamboko, who responded with a first time volley through a number of players and past a diving Bosso keeper Ariel Sibanda.
On Sunday, Dynamos’ skipper Ocean Mushure reportedly scored a beauty from a free kick as DeMbare beat Yadah FC 1-0. These are but a few examples of lost memories in a digital age.
However, Ndebele said clubs are permitted to record their football matches for analysis and archiving.
“The clubs are prohibited from selling or airing the footage on social media platforms, as this will be in breach of our broadcasting agreement with SuperSport. We do not have the capacity to record all matches as our financial base is limited. The current economic challenges are also affecting the league.
“The Premier Soccer League is leading the professionalisation of the league. However, it is important that clubs play a key role in the process. Once the Club Licensing system is in place, we will see clubs having business structures. This will lead to the generation of more revenue. We have recommended that all Premier Soccer League clubs employ fulltime staff – CEO/General Manager, public relations officers, security officers and qualified accountants,” Ndebele said. — @ZililoR.