Premier Soccer League (PSL) clubs would not allow Mamelodi Sundowns to participate in the African Football League (AFL), a lucrative new multimillion continental competition championed by Downs owner Patrice Motsepe in his capacity as president of the Confederation of African Football (Caf).
Initially announced as the Super League, Motsepe’s pet project, in partnership with world football governing body Fifa, is pencilled to start on October 20, with the final set for November 11. Its dates clash with the start of the Carling Cup, the PSL’s new cup competition.
An urgent PSL board of governors meeting was convened at Summer Place in Johannesburg on Thursday and attended by owners of 15 PSL clubs and 16 counterparts from the national first division — known as the Motsepe Championship because it is bankrolled by the Motsepe Foundation. They unanimously agreed to refuse the request to reshuffle domestic league fixtures to accommodate Sundowns’ AFL commitments.
The eight-team tournament carries a $4m (about R60-70 million) winner’s prize for the opening season. Runners-up will pocket $3m, $1,7m for the semifinalists and $1m for the quarterfinalists.
It will adopt a two-legged home and away quarterfinals and semifinals format, and climax in a two-legged final. Yesterday Caf said the AFL will kick off in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, when Tanzania’s Simba SC host African champions Al Ahly of Egypt on October 20.
The Caf statement included Sundowns and Enyimba (of Nigeria), Esperance (Tunisia), Petro de Luanda (Angola), TP Mazembe (Democratic Republic of Congo) and Moroccan outfit Wydad Casablanca (Morocco) as the other seven teams that will be part of the AFL.
People who attended Thursday’s meeting said the PSL was angered by the manner in which it received a letter from an unknown entity requesting a fixture reshuffle to accommodate Sundowns’ participation in the inaugural AFL.
Normally, the SA Football Association communicates with the PSL regarding local clubs participating in Caf club competitions.
One PSL club boss told the Sunday Times “31 club owners were present” at the meeting, and Sundowns were not allowed to participate or be present at the meeting because the matter was about them.
“They were told not to come. The meeting was at Summerplace in Hyde Park. People we don’t know wrote a letter to the PSL CEO [Mato Madlala]. We can’t be highjacked like that.”
The club owner said the PSL programme had been public knowledge all along.
Other than the Carling Cup first round fixtures on October 20 clashing with Sundowns’ away AFL quarterfinal first leg tie against Angolan club Petro de Luanda, two other league fixtures against Moroka Swallows on October 29 and TS Galaxy on November 12 clash with semifinals and the final of the competition.
“Already, Sundowns are participating in the Caf Champions League. and that programme has been accommodated, and now we must add another burden? The request was rejected. People were very angry. They felt they were being bullied.
“We don’t know this African Football League. The 31 teams in attendance unanimously voted against creating room for the competition because it will clash with the commencement of the Carling Cup.
They were asking the league to reshuffle the fixtures. That request was turned down in a unanimous decision
“The domestic leagues feel insulted because Caf has been telling them about a super league which now seems to be a close-knit arrangement of a select eight teams which will participate to the exclusion of the rest.”
When contacted for comment, PSL acting CEO Madlala said: “Angikhulumi lutho… I have no comment about that.”
Sundowns general manager Yogesh Singh did not respond to calls and messages. Neither did AFL communications officer Mohamed Thabet.
Caf secretary-general Veron Mosengo Omba yesterday said: “I’m busy in a different urgent meeting right now. I promise you I will get back to you in two hours’ time.”
Another club owner said there had never been “any conversation” with the league about the AFL. “The [2023-24] PSL fixtures were published in July. The league received the letter for the first time on September 18 to allow Sundowns space to play in this thing. But that will cause disruption because the Carling Cup kicks off on October 20.
“They were asking the league to reshuffle the fixtures. That request was turned down in a unanimous decision. There was no communication between the league and Sundowns. Sundowns never wrote a letter to the league asking for permission to go there.
“We can’t undermine our league. We were mindful that we run a professional league, our decision was principled.”
In its statement yesterday Caf said: “One of the main objectives for forming the AFL is to ensure that the quality of African club football is globally competitive and that African football clubs are commercially viable. The AFL will also contribute to the development and growth of youth football talent on the African continent.
“Caf’s intention is that all the 54 Caf member associations, including the countries that may not have football clubs in the AFL, should benefit and receive financial contributions from the commercial viability and success of the AFL.”
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