Giants soften up
Be Forward Wanderers and Nyasa Big Bullets have softened up on their earlier position not to surrender a percentage of their gate revenue to Football Players Association (FPA).
However, they have set a condition that they will fully support the idea once the apportioning criteria is revised so that the money should not come from gross gate revenue and that Super League of Malawi (Sulom), Football Association of Malawi (FAM) and Malawi National Council of Sports (MNCS) should contribute a bigger share than the clubs.
The TNM Super League giants were initially against the decision that eight percent from the gate revenue gross should go towards the FPA, arguing that it would be a burden to the clubs whose share is already depleted due to a big number of stakeholders that benefit from gate-takings.
But yesterday, Wanderers’ general secretary (GS) Mike Butao and Bullets chief executive officer Fleetwood Haiya said they are ready to let go of a certain percentage to the FPA.
“We have pushed the ball back to the FPA to come up with a proportion that is fair for everybody. We are ready to part ways with a percentage for the players’ welfare but the problem with this whole setup is that FAM, Sulom and the Council are not doing enough to fund the initiative,” Butao said.
He added that the decision to give FPA eight percent gross revenue will heavily affect the clubs because they will part ways with a big chunk of money considering that FAM, Sulom and the Council already benefit from their gate takings.
“It will be better, for instance, that FAM and Sulom contribute eight percent of their cut and the clubs at least two percent.”
While agreeing with Butao, Haiya said another option is for the FPA to act as only a regulatory body that makes sure the clubs are abiding by their mandate of getting the players insured and acquire all their benefits from their respective clubs.
“As Bullets, I can say, we are already doing more than what the FPA can offer to our players. This is why we suggest that the FPA should only be a regulatory body that comes in when the clubs are unable to fulfil their obligations,” he said.
However, FAM GS Alfred Gunda yesterday said the clubs’ suggestions are a nonstarter, arguing all stakeholders should, through the FPA, equally contribute to the welfare of the players, who do the donkey work on the ground.
“It is absurd for one entity to contribute more than the other to the welfare of players. That is why the idea of making our contribution through eight percent gross revenue is a more plausible one. Let us look at what the players will benefit from this initiative because we are all in the system because of these players,” he said.
FPA general secretary Ernest Mangani said they would have a stakeholders meeting within the next few days to map the way forward.
Meanwhile, three teams in the 16-team TNM Super League Dwangwa United, Nchalo United and Moyale Barracks have so far submitted lists of their players to the FPA in readiness for the scheme.
