Latest news with #Safa
The Herald
12 hours ago
- General
- The Herald
Jordaan promises MPs ‘accountability' as Tseka named as culprit for Bafana yellow card bungle
Bafana Bafana team manager Vincent Tseka was named by fuming MPs in parliament's sports portfolio committee as the official responsible for missing that Teboho Mokoena was suspended in SA's 2026 Fifa World Cup qualifier against Lesotho. The MPs demanded to know why the SA Football Association (Safa), reporting to the committee on Tuesday, has not taken action against Tseka . Mokoena played in the 2-0 win over Lesotho in Polokwane in March as Bafana's team management missed the midfielder having accumulated two yellow cards in previous matches, meaning he should have been suspended. The huge gaff seems certain to result in Group C leaders SA losing three points, which will endanger their chances of a first World Cup qualification other than as hosts since 2002. However, Tseka received a fair degree of cover from Safa head of legal Poobalan Govindasamy and president Danny Jordaan, who told MPs they were waiting for Fifa's final decision concluding their internal investigation.
News24
12 hours ago
- Business
- News24
Five key takeaways from Safa's financial statements presented in Parliament
Safa is technically insolvent, with liabilities exceeding assets by R141 million and a loss of R5.4 million for the year ended June 2024. The football association's officials were summoned to Parliament to explain their dire finances. The turnaround strategy includes implementing club licensing fees and registration fees for players and officials. On Tuesday, Safa laid bare its depressing audited annual financial statements before the sport, arts and culture portfolio committee in Parliament in Cape Town. The Safa delegation, led by its president Danny Jordaan, CEO Lydia Monyepao and chief financial officer Gronie Hluyo, revealed the association was technically insolvent and was facing a bleak future if it could not turn its finances around. Here are five takeaways from Safa's presentation. Safa is still technically insolvent The cash-strapped Safa reported an operating loss of R5.4 million for the year ended 30 June 2024. The association attributed the losses to a lack of funding for junior national teams, preparation costs for Banyana Banyana's 2023 Fifa Women's World Cup and Bafana Bafana's Afcon participation. More concerning is that Safa's liabilities exceed its assets by R141.2 million, which has created cash flow problems. Safa annual financial statement No bonus for Amajita's Under-20 Afcon-winning coach Despite leading Amajita to the Under-20 continental title last month, Monyepao said head coach Raymond Mdaka would not get a bonus for his monumental achievement. Last month, the former Safa technical director, Walter Steenbok, revealed Mdaka was on a one-year contract and earning R25 000 monthly. However, Monyepao refused to disclose Mdaka's salary when committee member Makashule Gana asked her to confirm Steenbok's claims. 'You are going to disclose,' said Gana, who was supported by committee chairperson Joe McGluwa. 'You must respond to that question and you are going to respond to it,' asserted McGluwa. 'It's not true,' Monyepao insisted. Monyepao said Mdaka earned more than R30 000 but not more than R50 000. She confirmed that Bafana head coach Hugo Broos earned more than R1 million a month. Monyepao also confirmed that Amajita travelled by bus for more than 15 hours to the tournament in Mozambique. Financial turnaround strategy Safa is implementing a club licensing and membership programme that will see its clubs pay a licence fee of between R300 and R1 million. All the players, coaches and officials will be required to register and pay a fee ranging from R20 to R5 000. 'The expected revenue to be generated in the first year from this programme is R17.8 million (next year) and it will grow to more than R50 million in 2030. 'There is a possibility of implementing this programme in this financial year and, if this materialises, an estimated revenue of R10 million will be generated,' according to the report. These amounts do not include the PSL clubs, which may add another R10 million in the first year, growing to R30 million by 2030. READ: Middendorp's open letter to PSL and Safa: 'NFD has lost integrity; please act' 'This programme will also require all the local football associations and regional football associations, including their executive members, to register. This will generate an additional R2.5 million for the association.' Safa added in the national executive committee report that these measures were part of the association's efforts to improve its dire financial position. The association also bemoaned that its junior national teams did not have sponsors. Safa added that it expected Bafana and Banyana to bring in a total of about R250 million if they qualified for their respective World Cups and Afcon tournaments. Safa wants a share of PSL revenue Safa finance chief Hluyo said the association wanted a share of the PSL's revenue. Danny Jordaan's U-turn After winning his third but controversy-marred term in June 2022, Jordaan said then that he would not seek another term. But it seems that he has had a change of heart and wants to cling to power. Rise Mzansi MP Gana asked Jordaan whether he would avail himself to serve another four-year when his current third term ended next year. Jordaan, who was first elected Safa president in September 2013, was non-committal. Pushed by Gana, Jordaan said he served at the mercy of the Safa members. Asked if he would stand again for a fourth term, Jordaan said: 'I don't know if they will nominate me or not. The nominations process is not yet open.' Pressed further to answer yes or no, Jordaan insisted: 'I don't know.' Jordaan was reminded of what his said in June 2022 shortly after his re-election. 'This is my last term,' Jordaan said three years. On Tuesday, Jordaan said 'did I say that', when asked whether he was reneging on his statement. 'Yes, you did,' charged Gana.
TimesLIVE
16 hours ago
- General
- TimesLIVE
Jordaan promises MPs ‘accountability' as Tseka named as culprit for Bafana yellow card bungle
Bafana Bafana team manager Vincent Tseka was named by fuming MPs in parliament's sports portfolio committee as the official responsible for missing that Teboho Mokoena was suspended in South Africa's 2026 Fifa World Cup qualifier against Lesotho. The MPs demanded to know why the South African Football Association (Safa), reporting to the committee on Tuesday, has not taken action against Tseka . Mokoena played in the Lesotho 2-0 win over Lesotho in Polokwane in March as Bafana's team management missed the midfielder having accumulated two yellow cards in previous matches, meaning he should have been suspended. The huge gaff seems certain to result in Group C leaders South Africa losing three points, which will endanger their chances of a first World Cup qualification other than as hosts since 2002. However, Tseka received a fair degree of cover from Safa head of legal Poobalan Govindasamy and president Danny Jordaan, who told MPs they were waiting for Fifa's final decision concluding their internal investigation.
Daily Maverick
16 hours ago
- Business
- Daily Maverick
Latest visit to Parliament paints grim picture of the finances of Danny Jordaan's Safa
There were two key takeaways from the South African Football Association's appearance before Parliament: its dire financial situation and its president, Danny Jordaan, hinting that he will run for a fourth term in 2026. The South African Football Association (Safa) is in financial trouble. That was one of the key takeaways from the federation's appearance before Parliament's sport, arts and culture oversight committee. During the routine visit to Parliament on Tuesday, 3 June Safa spoke about the financial struggles it is facing. The association's chief financial officer, Gronie Hluyo, said it is in debt, with its current liabilities exceeding its assets by R141-million. Over the past few months in particular Safa has battled to pay employees and service providers on time. Even senior national team players have sometimes had to wait it out for their match fees. In December 2024, the Department of Sport bailed out Safa from a financial quagmire by approving a R5-million advance from the association's annual government grant. However, in the long-term Safa still finds itself in a precarious financial position. Cashflow quagmire Hluyo said the reasons for this deficit included the adoption of gender parity policies for the senior teams, Bafana Bafana and Banyana Banyana. He said that despite this commitment from Safa, the limited sponsors approaching them were primarily interested in backing the men's team. The financial officer, who stands accused of fraud within Safa – alongside the federation's president Danny Jordaan and public relations company boss Trevor Neethling – told Parliament that Safa's cashflow struggles were primarily due to the organisation battling to attract sponsors. The latter situation, he submitted, is a direct result of the constantly negative publicity Safa receives in the media. According to Hluyo, one of the most important components in Safa balancing its books is the federation finishing the renovation of the Fun Valley Resort, which it bought in 2015. The vision was to transform the site into Safa's official national technical centre, thereby reducing costs significantly. 'We bought a place called Fun Valley, which we are developing into a national technical centre. We are in the process of constructing that national technical centre. Once that is complete it will result in a lot of cost saving for Safa, because our teams will be staying at the national technical centre and training there,' Hluyo said. 'Currently our biggest costs are flights, accommodation and player remuneration. So, if we can reduce the accommodation costs, that will help quite a lot. However, we need funders in order to complete the construction of the technical centre.' Safa paid R65-million for Fun Valley, which is in Johannesburg South. However, the purchase has been marred by controversy because of discrepancies in property valuations. It has always been said that Safa paid much more than what the property was worth. In 2023, Hluyo told the media that the association needed about R600-million to complete all the construction. But with its dire financial situation, as well as corporate companies shunning Safa due to the constant negative publicity, it's unclear where the money will come from. Negative publicity Hluyo also said Safa is also on the market for a public relations company to spruce up its image, owing to what Jordaan labelled a 'campaign' to derail the association, by both external and internal people. 'The campaign is intended to drive away the sponsors… It only happens to football. It won't happen to rugby and cricket. This is a political campaign and vicious campaign, but we will stand our ground. We will deliver the football that people want in this country. We are not afraid, we've seen worse,' Jordaan said. Indeed, Safa regularly pumps out statements disputing one thing or another – from allegations that Jordaan is running the association like a cartel, to him ousting all those who challenge his authority. It's a long list. Jordaan's former vice-president, Ria Ledwaba, once said of the Safa boss: 'As soon as you do not agree with the president, you are enemy number one.' Jordaan has consistently denied the allegations against him. Vehemently. The 73-year-old former Nelson Mandela Bay mayor has also argued that if he was as despicable as he is always portrayed in the public domain, then members of the association would not continuously entrust him to lead it. Another term? Jordaan is currently serving a third term as Safa boss. He was first elected in 2013 and his current four-year term began in 2022. Asked in Parliament whether he would ever consider voluntarily stepping down from his position, especially in light of the negative publicity in Safa which can be directly linked to him, Jordaan said no. 'In any position, in a democracy, you cannot give yourself a position. You cannot decide when you stay and when you go. That is the responsibility of our 52 regions, they will take that decision. It's not for me to say I want to be a president [or not]. I never said that to them. So, they will decide what they want to do,' Jordaan said. This is in stark contrast to what he said after his re-election in a landslide victory three years ago, when he implied that he had not wanted to run for president again and had only done so to groom a successor after Safa members had implored him to do so. 'That's one of the reasons why [some of the] members said 'you can't just drop the ball and go, you must have a succession plan'. I heard them and we agreed. It is not as if I woke up one morning and said I want a third term. That is far from the truth. I had accepted that I'd made my contribution,' Jordaan said in 2022. Asked about those remarks in Parliament on Tuesday, Jordaan appeared perplexed. He said: 'When did I say this?… Members must nominate. We have to wait and see. I don't know whether they'll nominate me or not.' With a large number of Safa's national executive committee members said to be personally benefiting, one way or the other, from Jordaan's extended stay at the association, he is likely to be nominated again – even though his presence is clearly a setback, in a number of ways, for the association. DM
The Herald
a day ago
- Business
- The Herald
We'll wait and see: Jordaan dribbles parliament on fourth term at Safa
Hluyo painted a grim picture of the finances at Safa, saying the association is in major need of sponsors, especially for its junior teams. These include the South Africa Under-20s who won the Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) in Egypt last month despite having had poor preparation that included travelling by bus to Mozambique for the Cosafa U-20 Championship, the qualifier for the Afcon. Safa received revenue of only R356m as sponsorship, while they had little income from their broadcast deal with the SABC, which is cash-strapped, Hluyo said. However, members of the portfolio committee said it would be difficult for them to recommend that sports minister Gayton McKenzie provide Safa with more money if the association cannot disclose the exact amount they receive from sponsors that include two betting companies, Hollywoodbets and 10bet. 'In terms of our sponsorship contracts we've got confidentiality clauses. We'll be in breach of those contracts if we disclose sponsorship agreements and their value,' Hluyo said. As not all members of the committee were able to ask questions, the meeting was adjourned to a date to be determined. Jordaan welcomed that decision as he insisted Safa has nothing to hide.
