Yanga President and Chairman of the Association of African Clubs (ACA), Engineer Hersi Said, has emphasized that African clubs must address governance, infrastructure, and sponsorship challenges in order to make significant developmental progress.
Hersi made the remarks following an intense debate that emerged after comments he recently made at a football conference organized by the International Federation of Association Football (FIFA) in Qatar.
He explained that his intention at the conference was not to belittle any team, but rather to contribute by highlighting how many African clubs are grappling with various weaknesses, including governance problems, infrastructure deficiencies, and lack of sustainable sponsorship.
âI spoke about the development of clubs and changes in leadership. The first area I addressed was governance challengesâyou cannot run away from good leadership that is supposed to manage our clubs. I gave examples from our own clubs, starting with Yanga, showing where we came from, and even presented videos of our membersâ meetings before the leadership reforms. After that, we showed what has been happening with our colleagues at Simba,â he said.
âI want to tell you that back home people are debating minor issues, but here our counterparts are highly enlightened about how African clubs need to change administratively. We cannot achieve major progress if we continue to struggle with governance challenges,â he added.
Hersi further explained that infrastructure is another area where clubs must improve, citing how Yanga once had a weak facility before transforming it into a modern structure.
âThere is also the issue of infrastructure. Let us accept that we owe a big debt in terms of change here. At the conference, I showed pictures of our club building before major renovations. Through operational transformation, I showed images of our club and facilities beforeâyet you do not hear Yanga supporters complaining,â he explained.
âWhen you talk about football development, youth football, and proper systems for developing playersâespecially young boys and girlsâthese are the real challenges facing our clubs here in Africa.
âAfter identifying those issues, the second step was to look at the right solutions. I explained that the correct approach is to change how our clubs are run, to bring in leadership with solid systems, to involve professionals in football, and to seek sponsors, because our clubs still desperately need sponsorship to sustain themselves. All these factors can contribute to the development of African football.
âThe third area we highlighted was the benefits of leadership transformation that our club has begun to experience. For example, at Yanga, before these changes we were generating about TSh 10 million per year, but now we are talking about revenues of TSh 1.3 billion. We used to have fewer than 1,000 active members, but now we have over 90,000 active members. We generate significant income and still have the potential to do even more. I believe you journalists saw this during our last general meeting,â he said.
Hersi added that he has no issues with Simbaâs leadership or the club itself, stressing that his contribution was meant to help all clubsâan approach that was positively received at the conference.
âI have great respect for Simba, from their chairman Murtaza Mangungu to the board chairman Magori (Crescentius). I believe that if you speak to them, they will also admit that these are major challenges facing our clubs. We have confronted them and continue to do so, and they are also dealing with them,â he concluded.
