By Kgomotso Mokoena
Johannesburg – Part of Safa insisting that Bafana Bafana qualify for the Africa Cup of Nations (Afcon) and the Fifa World Cup is because of the huge financial incentives that the country gets for being part of these tournaments.
As a result, the national association is insisting that Bafana must qualify for the 2021 Afcon and the 2022 Fifa World Cup in Qatar.
Safa chief financial officer Gronie Hluyo said that the association gets a good financial injection from CAF or Fifa and that goes a long way in the running of the organisation.
“For example, you get $475 000 [R7-million] just for qualifying for the Afcon. If you get to the next round, it accumulates to $575 000 [R9.2-million]. The losing finalists get $2-million [R32-million] and the winners $4-million [R64-million]. This is good money into the coffers of any association,” said Hluyo.
“There is more cheese in the World Cup and that is why we are going to push the players to take us to Qatar. After qualifying, you get $2-million [R32-million] as a preparation fee to get the team ready for the tournament.
If we qualify, the players will be rewarded handsomely for this windfall
“And just by being part of the 32 teams you get another $10-million [R160 million]. This means all in all you get $12-million [R190-million] just for showing up and it accumulates as you advance further in the tournament. These are the 2018 World Cup prize monies and they will be increased at the 2022 event in Qatar.
“If we qualify, the players will be rewarded handsomely for bringing in this windfall. That is why we came up with the new bonus structure to make sure that the team does qualify.
“The money will also help contribute towards the development of football. It’s difficult to find a sponsor that is willing to fund grassroots programmes because they believe that they do not get the mileage or returns. So they would rather sponsor Bafana or Banyana Banyana.”
Said Safa president Danny Jordaan: “It is a huge boost if we qualify. It will lessen the financial burden drastically. We should be able to qualify; we have about 65 players playing abroad, we do have quality players. But qualifying is not only about the financial gain, it is about boosting the Bafana brand and establishing it as a powerhouse again.”
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