My Turn

Dilemma of Malawi football

 

Malawian football has been stuck for a while now. However, a critical look at the situation will show that the contributing factors are not coaches that the Football Association of Malawi (FAM) hires and fires.

The over-stay in office of FAM leadership is the main contributing factor to the dwindling performance of our national team.

The leadership at FAM appears to be out of touch with reality. We need an overhaul of the whole football administration if we really want to see positive results.

The recent changes at the world soccer governing body—International Federation of Association Football (Fifa)—should be a wake up call that change is possible and nobody was born a football lifetime administrator.

The leadership at FAM has achieved several things and they have to be recommended. If we can have the changes at FAM now rather than later, it will rejuvenate the long-awaited hopes that Malawians have been anticipating.

We have seen how some teams in Africa have improved in the recent times, including some that have been perceived as African football underdogs. It is time we moved forward. The leadership at FAM should not hold the nation at ransom. This should be treated as a matter of urgency since, currently, Malawi football is on a life support machine.

Instead of making noise and shouting at the national team whenever it loses, it’s time to be innovative and come up with new and radical changes at FAM. The dull performance at the Council for Southern Africa Football Associations (Cosafa) Cup leaves a lot to be desired. It is time to seriously review the football association’s three-year strategic plan.

Our players should feel motivated on and off the pitch. Our players should be treated as national team players and not subjected to ridicule. As a nation hungry for a win, we need answers as to why an oversized uniform was used for the national team at the Cosafa Cup tournament in South Africa.

It is time to take the bull by its horns; government has done its part in terms of releasing funding to the national team. With good leadership, the corporate world will come out of its cocoon and support football association’s commercial drive.

Our football challenges and woes are beyond the coaching panel and players. We can have the best coach in the calibre of Jose Mourinho but our results will never improve. FAM should stop experimenting expatriate coaches on our football.

The call for a change at FAM will be embraced by many soccer loving Malawians. FAM president [Walter Nyamilandu] has done his part and I don’t think we can take away the hard work of the people at FAM.

We have more deserving Malawians who can play a decisive role in determining and shaping the future of Malawian football. We need people who will add value to the beautiful game of football. Much as we think that there are some people who have overstayed in the FAM executive, but change is necessary if we really want to see positive results.

The new leadership must be transparent in their dealings to win the hearts of the affiliate’s confidence. Everything must be done above board to ensure good governance. Most importantly, more funds must be channelled towards the grassroots football development, as this is the future of the sport in Malawi.

As a country, we should also applaud government for the construction of some football stadia across the country. However, we should not be proud with the exports of players to Mozambique and South Africa. It is time we looked beyond neighbouring countries and the continent.  n

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