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Ricky Zililo, Senior Sports Reporter
WORLD Leagues Forum (WLF) secretary-general Jerome Perlemuter has challenged local clubs to “think outside the box” and be innovative to unlock potential revenue.
Perlemuter, who is also a judge of the Fifa Dispute Resolution Chamber and a member of the Ethics Committee of the French Football Federation, said player sales have proved to be one of the major income generators for clubs.
“Firstly l think the potential is great because the quality of players and potential of the players is immense. Africa has been training some of the best players in the world so in terms of human resources there is a huge potential. There is also potential because the people, the fans here love football,” said Perlemuter.
“There is no magic recipe from one day to drive fans into the stadium. There is a strategy on many items and fan engagement is one. I think what happens in the stadium is very important; how do you welcome the fans, what is it that you offer them, how is the stadium structured? l think the experience of a fan is not only about the team playing well, it’s also about enjoying being in the stadium and l think there may be some improvements in that regard,” he said. He said clubs should not only rely on gate takings for survival, but should explore other avenues like selling merchandise as well as realising value in stadium advertising.
Broadcasting rights were the biggest cash flow in major leagues in the world and Perlemuter encouraged the PSL to pursue such deals.
“In terms of revenue for clubs, you have TV rights and l understand that now the situation is difficult in Zimbabwe in terms of TV rights. l think that is why you need to build professional football and build trust with the broadcaster.
“Potential revenue generators are TV rights, gate takings, merchandising and there is also player trading. Most clubs the world over rely on player trading. When you think that the quality of the players you have is great, you should think about how to export the players,” he said.
The PSL used to be sponsored by South African broadcaster SuperSport, which used to give clubs grants, but it did not renew the deal with PSL when it ended in 2017. Perlemuter commended the PSL for organising the football symposium in the resort town of Victoria Falls.
“I think the PSL is doing a great job. Kennedy Ndebele, the PSL CEO, decided to have Zimbabwe join the World Leagues Forum (WLF) last year, a body of professional football leagues from around the globe. He has been trying to engage to try to learn from what is being done abroad and l think the commitment by PSL to try to make professional football in Zimbabwe better could make everyone optimistic about the future of Zimbabwean football,” he said. Ndebele said benefits of the symposium will be reaped later.
“Football development is not a one-day thing. What we learnt is a long-term process. We’re not solving immediate problems by holding these seminars. Remember that club licensing was talked about in 2009 and we’re still developing. Governance is short term and clubs need to sort their structures, employ a secretariat which will be responsible for the day-to-day operations as well as thinking of ways of generating revenue for the clubs,” said Ndebele.
“We’re happy that the government was represented at the symposium and the SRC is already working on a strategic plan for sport in general. Soon we shall be engaging stadium owners, especially on leases. Clubs should be allowed to use all facilities at stadiums and unlock revenue from touchline advertising and kiosks, among others. You find that third parties are in charge of kiosks and touchline advertising at Rufaro and Barbourfields stadiums,” he said. – @ZililoR
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