Durban - The KwaZulu-Natal Premier, Nomusa Dube-Ncube is confident that hosting the World Football Summit in the city was a positive move towards achieving an economic boost.
The summit, held at the Durban International Convention Centre (ICC) saw industry professionals from over 50 countries and over 120 attendees convene to tackle various topics in football, and how business opportunities could be generated to achieve economic advancement across all sectors.
The event was held on Wednesday and Thursday.
Dube-Ncube said that R480 million would be injected into the province’s economy.
She noted that football was a multi-billion industry which had the potential to make a remarkable contribution to the gross domestic product of countries and the economy, at a global level.
“We estimate that the summit alone will potentially inject approximately R480 million into our economy. Many of you are aware of the tragic loss of more than 440 lives during the floods in April. We are pleased that your presence comes as a welcome boost to our province’s Economic Recovery and Transformation Plan,” she said.
She said that the province was looking to make use of all opportunities available for the youth, in all the frontiers of sports and the digital economy, for the benefit of young people.
“We are looking at new industries of the future in order to ensure that our citizens take advantage and they do not only become consumers of the service,” she said.
Reflecting on the 2010 Soccer World Cup which generated more than R3 billion for Durban and the KwaZulu-Natal (KZN), the premier said that she hoped the summit would further ignite the tourist interest in the province.
“We will continue to work closely with our football legends in KZN to develop the sport of football among boys and girls. We also believe that we are not tapping fully into football’s potential to boost our province not only by hosting Premier Soccer League and Fifa matches, but by hosting international conferences and events such as this one,” she said.
The premier committed to working with structures on a focused program to facilitate and fast-track development of talented footballers in order for them to get exposure to international clubs.
The theme “Development of Next Generation of Elite African Athletes Through Growing Youth Football Academies” was thrust into the spotlight during one of the panel discussions.
Coach and club owner of Jomo Cosmos, Dr Jomo Sono, said that development, at his camp was based on the human being and adding value to the youth.
“When we take them at school, we always make sure to tell them to mix school and football because the lifespan of a soccer player is very short,” he said, adding that talent alone was not enough for a player.
He further said that the athlete’s skills alone were not enough, and would be required to be looked at holistically, including their backgrounds.
Sono said that contracts also had to be looked at holistically, and be structured in a manner that did not allow big teams to simply take a local player free of charge, and that if proper contracts were done, South Africans could compete. Sono said that education for players was key at his academy.
Another key issue that was magnified was Defeating Stereotypes to Seize A Unique Opportunity, under the theme African Women’s Football.
Mamelodi Sundowns Chairman Tlhopie Motsepe attributed the women’s inability to occupy major positions to men occupying those spaces, further calling on them to be part of the solution.
“At Mamelodi Sundowns, I am happy to say that we have taken a more aggressive role in getting women involved in the different and important departments of our football club with titles like decision-makers, deputy chairperson is a woman,” he said.
Motsepe said it was possible to get quality and ensure that women had access to additional funds.
“It is possible if you make sure that the right sponsor and partners are available in terms of bringing the broadcasting revenues to the table. In Africa, the talent and the passion for football and especially women’s football is available in ample supply. We need to make sure that the right people and right partners see value,” he said.
SUNDAY TRIBUNE