The newly appointed Nyasa Big Bullets Chief Executive Officer Suzgo Nyirenda says the much-touted commercialization drive undertaken by some elite clubs will be meaningless if some reforms are not implemented at Super League of Malawi (Sulom).
Speaking to Bullets media on Monday, the former Football Association of Malawi (FAM) General Secretary and former Deputy General Secretary of Cosafa said the current state of Malawian football needs a very vibrant Sulom to ensure that clubs benefit from the amount of resources being invested into the game.
He gave an example of how the Premier Soccer League (PSL) which runs the elite league in South Africa attracts players from all over the world, saying the brand is even bigger than SAFA hence the need to follow suit in Malawi.
“If we put our houses in order, if all the clubs embrace commercialization, we can develop the game but most importantly, we need reforms at Super League of Malawi because it’s a very big brand. When we talk about Orlando Pirates, Kaizer Chiefs, Mamelodi Sundowns etc, we talk about PSL which is very strong than SAFA.”
“So, I believe in order to develop Malawian football, there must be some reforms in how the game is run in the country. For the clubs to operate commercially, we need a very reformed Sulom. Once we do this, we will never be talking about playing the Super League for MK15 million when the teams are spending a lot of money to run these clubs so we need to have a brand as a league and then the clubs will follow.
“There was a reason why FAM introduced Club Licensing. They wanted the league to be licensed and once this is done, it becomes more easier for the clubs to follow. We need to have one voice as clubs and it’s now time for Sulom to wake up, we will do whatever it takes to make sure that we bring some reforms at Sulom and that’s why I had to make a decision to leave Cosafa to come home and serve Bullets so that I add value to this club and Malawian football in general,” he said.
According to reports, Silver Strikers and Bullets spend a lot of money per season in running the two clubs but the league winner gets MK15 million/season.
Currently, the league is being sponsored by mobile service operators TNM whose contract expired in December last year but extended their stay due to Covid-19 pandemic which forced the league to start late in November.
