Sportspeople must invest earnings wisely
THE sight of sickly Yesteryear Greats and other sportspersons who are no longer players is worrying.
In most instances, it’s not ill-health but the fact that they have fallen on tough times.
Many Yesteryear Greats played for the love of sport. They got nothing out of it. It was a bonus if playing football or running for a mine landed them a job otherwise a majority of them had to make do with being hangers-on just for a few beers.
It is worrying going to townships and meeting dozens of former footballers loitering and hoping for that one odd sympathiser in these times of economic hardships. It’s natural for hordes to empathise but unfortunately they cannot do anything because of the low withdrawals at banks.
Sportspersons must make the best out of their meagre earnings by investing in tangible projects. It is common for a player to buy a car with his first signing-on fee.
Investing in a stand and start building a home slowly is better. With the lavish and beer laden lifestyles vehicles are often left as wrecks after accidents while a residential stand or house may appreciate in value.
It is worth consulting a financial advisor who may say $30 a month may go a long way towards some form of personal savings or pension. In a year that is $360 and over $10 000 including interest over one’s career that paid as a lump sum can go a long way in helping one start a life outside football.
A career in sport is an indefinite job as one may last just a few days as a professional or be lucky to play for as long as 20 years. This is for those who stay injury free or subscribe to healthy lifestyles of less booze and keep good company.
Our Yesteryear Greats should be a good learning podium for younger players. They are a perfect example on what one should not do while the fortunes roll positively.
I was lucky to stumble on Have-A-Look Dube, a former Zesa Hwange and Njube Sundowns tear away winger in Beitbridge. His story is one for many players to emulate. Nearing the end of his career, Dube was invited to join Border Strikers with a confirmed job offer as a clearing clerk.
“It was an opportunity I could not spurn. I had young children and a family to feed and I said already in my 30s, there was no future anymore on my legs, why not take the gamble and play for two or three years and get a job as my pension for my many years in the game of football.
“I am happy my eldest kid is writing O-levels this year. I could have had difficulties finding a job in Bulawayo after retiring, but here I am hustling for a living here and I have no regrets at all,” said Dube as he waited for his turn to be attended by customs at the Zimbabwe border,” said Dube.
Dube’s case is an example worthy using to advise other senior footballers.
The glamour associated with playing for Dynamos and Highlanders is well documented. Both clubs, the country’s most supported and successful in the history of the game since Independence, have thousands of supporters strewn all over the world. Happenings in their midst, be it in the boardroom or field, are tremours felt thousands of kilometres away.
Many players stick to these teams until they attract the wrath of the fans when they are well past their sell by dates.
With no prospect of moving abroad beyond the marketable threshold of 27 years of age, players at this stage must think about securing their future. The root is to go to a club that guarantees life after football with a job.
Not all players can be coaches or managers. These are often in-born to individual stars while others may be lucky to be dragged to positions by connections. But the lesser connected will face the harsh reality of life when they start looking for formal employment.
Playing days do not allow for any life skills training outside football. Even if they get jobs many tend to find it more demanding than running up Danger Escarpment in Esigodini. The 8-5pm thing is just not for them. A clever footie could deliberately consider moving to clubs like Black Rhinos, ZRP, Ntabazinduna and Buffaloes and join the forces. There is guarantee of a pension, medical aid and accommodation and sustenance until retirement age at 55 or 60 compared to getting friends running away from them at bottle stores.
Even teams like Hwange FC have over the past five decades provided their former players with decent jobs. Some have been lucky to train as artisans, drivers and clerks, jobs that they cling to until normal retirement age.
The downfall of most footballers is developing a complex and ruling out staying at barracks or mining town.
For those that have lived at some of the mines they will testify that life is just as good but the most important thing is having a future off the field which is something few players think about.
A footballer thinks for that particular year and not the future. They tend to leave everything to chance, forgetting that groupies will end as soon as they retire or get injured as hangers-on rarely get mileage out of former players who were of average ability.
A group of footballers in Bulawayo who started off as the Class of 1998, have formed a group and play regularly. They also engage in community and charity work with the likes of Mayfield Daka, Herbert Dick, Ronald Sibanda, Nkosana Gumbo, Aubrey Sauramba, Keeper Ndlovu, Alexander Phiri and Simon Sibanda eager to demystify held theories about former footballers.
“We want to have a positive image about ourselves. We want to help our community by fundraising, engaging in campaigns such as HIV where we could be involved in peer education campaigns through the use of recognisable sports personalities.
“We are also available to communities for football training and even schools as some of us have acquired coaching qualifications. Football is all what we know and we would want to give back to its development and also make a living out of it,” said Dick.
Zimbabwe Former Footballers Association (Zifofa) has a constitution and its membership continues to grow in Bulawayo, according to Dick.
He said planning for the future was important for the players and that this needed a multi-faceted approach with industry also involved instead of leaving everything to footballers and administrators.
“Mistakes may have been made in the past, as Zimbabweans we need to help former footballers and those still active to lead decent lives. We were entertainers and brand ambassadors, we want to continue carrying the positive images that earn us respect to our families and former clubs,” said the respected Dick who feels not much attention is paid to former players once they retire.
“Of course some mines and companies not leaving out uniformed services have been able to provide for their players when they retire,” said Dick.