28-07-2005, 12:15 PM
Cape Town soccer is at the crossroads.
It has been standing there - undecided and indifferent - for a long, long time. But with South Africa due to host the World Cup in 2010 and cities scrambling to be part of the prestigious event, the pressure is on Cape Town to prove that it has a soccer support base to justify its inclusion as one of the host cities.
The sport in this city has to make a decision on where it wants to go. Either it places itself on a road that makes a determined and concerted effort to win back the Cape Town supporter, or it finds itself in a position where it remains the ignored step-child of South African soccer.
As Premier League chief executive Trevor Phillips admitted in an interview earlier this week: "... not enough is being done to sell the soccer message in Cape Town".
'Not enough is being done to sell the soccer message in Cape Town'
So what are the problems? And are there any solutions for enticing supporters back to the sport known as the beautiful game?
For Santos boss Goolam Allie, the problem starts with administrators.
"For a long time now there has been little co-operation between between SAFA-WP and the professional clubs," said Allie. "There is no unity of purpose. Everything is done separately and in opposition to one another."
"Every club wants to be an island. Everybody wants to do his own thing and there is little encouragement for youngsters to get out and watch the sport."
"Instead of the loving the game of soccer and doing everything to promote the development of the sport, it has all become about personalities... individuals have placed their own personal aspirations above the betterment of the game."
'We are constantly being bombarded with English football'
SAFA-WP President Vernon Seymour agrees with Allie to an extent, but emphasises that progress has been made in trying to address this lack of unity.
"In the past, there was great soccer support because the amateur and professional codes were a lot closer together," said Seymour. "But the giant organisation and structures of modern professional football has created a massive gap between the two codes."
"What needs to be done is to bridge that gap, bring the professional teams closer to their amateur counterparts, and then see how we can promote and develop the game in the city."
Seymour said there is now an agreement in place that will see the two Premier League clubs, Ajax Cape Town and Santos, the two First Division clubs, Vasco da Gama and FC Fortune, and SAFA-WP meet on a regular basis to have discussions on finding solutions that benefit the improvement of football and its support base in Cape Town."
Seymour was adamant, though, that the media also had a role to play. This is something very close to the WP president's heart and he was scathing in his criticism of some newspapers and radio stations in the city.
"It's been a major problem down the years," he said. "The promotion of European soccer remains an issue. It started in the bad days of apartheid and has continued in the new era of democracy."
"The media, as the creators of public perception, are just as culpable for the state of soccer in Cape Town. They have a role to play in selling local football to the public. They have to make a much bigger investment in creating awareness of the sport. Instead we are constantly being bombarded with English football... "
"With genuine collaboration between the media, SAFA-WP and the professional clubs, we can make things better, thereby developing the sport and taking it to its rightful place as one of the most popular in the city."
But what else lurks in the mind of the local soccer supporter? Cape Town has a strong soccer culture and some of the greats of the domestic game have emerged from these shores. So surely there are other issues contributing to the dwindling support on the terraces.
Former Hellenic coach Neven Payne, who played professionally for Hellenic and Santos and is now director of coaching at the Cape Town-Tygerberg district, says Premier League clubs need to look at the composition of their squads.
"Supporters don't know the players, so why should they bother coming to watch professional teams," said Payne. "They have too many players from neighbouring African countries and other parts of South Africa. So much so that local fans cannot identify with the teams anymore."
"Like it or not, this is a different kind of city. The supporters are parochial. "When I played we attracted people from the townships we came from. If you were from Heideveld, Manenberg, Elsies River or Bonteheuwel, the people from those places followed the team because you played there. We made an impact on their lives, we were examples they could hold up as players who came from backgrounds and surroundings similar to theirs."
"Now, players and supporters feel nothing for each other. Premier League derbies mean nothing because the current players don't understand the rivalry and the dynamics attached to them."
Payne also adds clubs have to make it worthwhile for the supporter to leave the comfort of his home to come to soccer.
"It's not like the old days when there was nothing else to do, but watch soccer," stressed Payne. "There are so many other entertainment options available... there's television with a surfeit of soccer options, and cinemas, malls, casinos, etc."
"Football has to realise that it is in the entertainment business. If it wants a share of the public's hard-earned money, it has to produce quality soccer."
And that is a point conceded by Ajax chief executive John Comitis, who has spent the past nine years as an administrator desperately trying to woo back generations of lost soccer supporters.
"I've tried everything, from fancy marketing to all manner of world-class ideas. Nothing has really worked," says Comitis.
"Most importantly... you cannot fool the Cape Town soccer supporter. It all comes down to quality. And that's something I have communicated to the coaches and players in my teams."
"But based on my experiences with marketing and promotion of soccer over the years, I have come to just one conclusion. I've tried everything, I'm down to the last throw of the dice: I'm taking the game to the people. I believe that is the only way soccer can go."
To achieve his new goal, Comitis has taken Ajax away from Newlands and moved the team to Athlone for the new season, which kicks off next week. Then they will be building a brand new stadium in Phillippi, which places the team in the midst of, and within reach of, the traditional Cape Town soccer fan. "I've realised over the years that the R20 entrance fee for games eventually boils down to something like R50 a game when taking transport into consideration. For the ordinary fan, that is a hefty sum of money."
"So instead of asking them to come to us, I'm taking the team to them. It's my last resort. I'm excited about it."
"In Phillippi, we'll rub shoulders with the surrounding communities. In the past, because of Newlands, it was always felt that Ajax were a little elitist, now we are effectively telling them 'Here we are, right in your backyard'."
It has been standing there - undecided and indifferent - for a long, long time. But with South Africa due to host the World Cup in 2010 and cities scrambling to be part of the prestigious event, the pressure is on Cape Town to prove that it has a soccer support base to justify its inclusion as one of the host cities.
The sport in this city has to make a decision on where it wants to go. Either it places itself on a road that makes a determined and concerted effort to win back the Cape Town supporter, or it finds itself in a position where it remains the ignored step-child of South African soccer.
As Premier League chief executive Trevor Phillips admitted in an interview earlier this week: "... not enough is being done to sell the soccer message in Cape Town".
'Not enough is being done to sell the soccer message in Cape Town'
So what are the problems? And are there any solutions for enticing supporters back to the sport known as the beautiful game?
For Santos boss Goolam Allie, the problem starts with administrators.
"For a long time now there has been little co-operation between between SAFA-WP and the professional clubs," said Allie. "There is no unity of purpose. Everything is done separately and in opposition to one another."
"Every club wants to be an island. Everybody wants to do his own thing and there is little encouragement for youngsters to get out and watch the sport."
"Instead of the loving the game of soccer and doing everything to promote the development of the sport, it has all become about personalities... individuals have placed their own personal aspirations above the betterment of the game."
'We are constantly being bombarded with English football'
SAFA-WP President Vernon Seymour agrees with Allie to an extent, but emphasises that progress has been made in trying to address this lack of unity.
"In the past, there was great soccer support because the amateur and professional codes were a lot closer together," said Seymour. "But the giant organisation and structures of modern professional football has created a massive gap between the two codes."
"What needs to be done is to bridge that gap, bring the professional teams closer to their amateur counterparts, and then see how we can promote and develop the game in the city."
Seymour said there is now an agreement in place that will see the two Premier League clubs, Ajax Cape Town and Santos, the two First Division clubs, Vasco da Gama and FC Fortune, and SAFA-WP meet on a regular basis to have discussions on finding solutions that benefit the improvement of football and its support base in Cape Town."
Seymour was adamant, though, that the media also had a role to play. This is something very close to the WP president's heart and he was scathing in his criticism of some newspapers and radio stations in the city.
"It's been a major problem down the years," he said. "The promotion of European soccer remains an issue. It started in the bad days of apartheid and has continued in the new era of democracy."
"The media, as the creators of public perception, are just as culpable for the state of soccer in Cape Town. They have a role to play in selling local football to the public. They have to make a much bigger investment in creating awareness of the sport. Instead we are constantly being bombarded with English football... "
"With genuine collaboration between the media, SAFA-WP and the professional clubs, we can make things better, thereby developing the sport and taking it to its rightful place as one of the most popular in the city."
But what else lurks in the mind of the local soccer supporter? Cape Town has a strong soccer culture and some of the greats of the domestic game have emerged from these shores. So surely there are other issues contributing to the dwindling support on the terraces.
Former Hellenic coach Neven Payne, who played professionally for Hellenic and Santos and is now director of coaching at the Cape Town-Tygerberg district, says Premier League clubs need to look at the composition of their squads.
"Supporters don't know the players, so why should they bother coming to watch professional teams," said Payne. "They have too many players from neighbouring African countries and other parts of South Africa. So much so that local fans cannot identify with the teams anymore."
"Like it or not, this is a different kind of city. The supporters are parochial. "When I played we attracted people from the townships we came from. If you were from Heideveld, Manenberg, Elsies River or Bonteheuwel, the people from those places followed the team because you played there. We made an impact on their lives, we were examples they could hold up as players who came from backgrounds and surroundings similar to theirs."
"Now, players and supporters feel nothing for each other. Premier League derbies mean nothing because the current players don't understand the rivalry and the dynamics attached to them."
Payne also adds clubs have to make it worthwhile for the supporter to leave the comfort of his home to come to soccer.
"It's not like the old days when there was nothing else to do, but watch soccer," stressed Payne. "There are so many other entertainment options available... there's television with a surfeit of soccer options, and cinemas, malls, casinos, etc."
"Football has to realise that it is in the entertainment business. If it wants a share of the public's hard-earned money, it has to produce quality soccer."
And that is a point conceded by Ajax chief executive John Comitis, who has spent the past nine years as an administrator desperately trying to woo back generations of lost soccer supporters.
"I've tried everything, from fancy marketing to all manner of world-class ideas. Nothing has really worked," says Comitis.
"Most importantly... you cannot fool the Cape Town soccer supporter. It all comes down to quality. And that's something I have communicated to the coaches and players in my teams."
"But based on my experiences with marketing and promotion of soccer over the years, I have come to just one conclusion. I've tried everything, I'm down to the last throw of the dice: I'm taking the game to the people. I believe that is the only way soccer can go."
To achieve his new goal, Comitis has taken Ajax away from Newlands and moved the team to Athlone for the new season, which kicks off next week. Then they will be building a brand new stadium in Phillippi, which places the team in the midst of, and within reach of, the traditional Cape Town soccer fan. "I've realised over the years that the R20 entrance fee for games eventually boils down to something like R50 a game when taking transport into consideration. For the ordinary fan, that is a hefty sum of money."
"So instead of asking them to come to us, I'm taking the team to them. It's my last resort. I'm excited about it."
"In Phillippi, we'll rub shoulders with the surrounding communities. In the past, because of Newlands, it was always felt that Ajax were a little elitist, now we are effectively telling them 'Here we are, right in your backyard'."