SABC to blame for Bafana

AFTER taking the blame for the blackouts of Bafana Bafana s matches

’ in the rest of Africa, French TV rights agency SportFive has hit back.

Speaking publicly for the first time in South Africa since the Confederation of African Football (Caf) awarded SportFive the rights to all football competitions in the continent in 2007, the agency s marketing

’ manager Idriss Akki said the company was not the devil we have been

“made out to be ”.

The SABC has failed to broadcast two of Bafana s Nations Cup qual

’ ifiers in October 2010 against Sierra Leone and in September last year against Niger. The allegations against SportFive were that it had demanded inflated amounts from the SABC to show the matches.

This week Akki blamed the national broadcaster s chopping and

’ changing of CEOs during negotiations as one of the reasons for the blackouts. He said local politics led to the

“” SABC not showing Bafana against Niger after SportFive had made the rights available at what he called a

market-related price ”. “

A three-year contract between the SABC and SportFive, which will see the national broadcaster exclusively showing Bafana s away games

’ – including 2014 World Cup qualifiers

live, was reached this week. –

The deal is valued at R28m and also means the SABC will show the 2015 Nations Cup in Morocco.

Despite this deal, Akki still wanted to defend the agency s image.

’ When Bafana played “

Sierra