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Powerful political connections have given Khoza the keys to Fifa’s 2010 showpiece


Chairperson of the Premier Soccer League Irvin Khoza is now chair of the 2010 World Cup Local Organising Committee, which gives him considerable weight to change the way the games are organised, players are contracted, gate takings are controlled, crowds are regulated and finances directed.

Catalyst for winning the Fifa event, which is giving South Africa an energy and positive direction in all aspects of political endeavour – from airports, roads and railway upgrades, advanced communications, especially TV and radio, tourism, stadium design and infrastructure – Khoza now has a pivotal role to play in the success of South Africa’s economy and image to the world.

Despite a dark past cloaked in contentious financial dealings, soccer’s Iron Duke has succeeded in winning friends and influencing people in high places. Khoza has amassed a private fortune, which tax assessors estimate to exceed R60 million. Yet, before he started gaining benefits from his controls in soccer, Khoza was an entrepreneur of note and involved in soccer administration even whilst at school in Soweto.

In 1980 he was appointed secretary of Orlando Pirates, but was kicked out a year later for reasons that have never been disclosed. After a decade, he had made big money from property deals and returned in triumph to take up the directions of a bankrupt Pirates club.

Under his direction, Pirates has been built into a money-spinning conglomerate, but again not without controversy. Some of the star players sold to European clubs led to problems when tax investigations showed Khoza had put the money from the 1996 sales of Mark Fish and Helman Mkhalele into a trust account without benefiting the club. Jomo Sono, who owned a share in the players with Khoza, in an affidavit, told of the huge profits the pair made from the sale.

As well as owner of Orlando Pirates, Khoza is South African Football Association’s vice-president and chairperson of the Premier Soccer League. His greatest coup to date, however, would have to be the use of his close connections to senior government officials to persuade Nelson Mandela and Thabo Mbeki in giving a high profile to win the campaign for South Africa to stage the 2010 Fifa World Cup.

Leadership interviewed him on his current role in the local organising committee:

Having has just hosted the Tottenham Hotspur tour as well as the Madiba celebrity match, there were opportunities to implement some working systems that will be fundamental to the 2010 World Cup, such as the security and ticketing systems. How will the Premier Soccer League set about exposing local fans to these systems ahead of 2010?

We have to work hand in hand with the LOC to ensure that these types of systems are in place. We can only do that when soccer itself has the use of its own stadiums. Once the facilities are in place, we can implement the latest systems and technologies in line with world standards. We, as the PSL, have started already the process of engaging the LOC and planning to work together to improve soccer’s infrastructure.

What is the primary role of your organisation in the build-up to 2010?

Our focus at present is to establish our league as one of the best in the world. Our new five-year television broadcast deal is a step in that direction. We now need to ensure that our clubs are empowered with appropriate facilities and that we invest meaningfully in our human resources so that we have a world-class product.

The PSL has just awarded television rights to the pay channel SuperSport instead of the public broadcaster’s free-to-air channels. The end result is that even more soccer will be televised than ever before. Will there be a drop in crowd attendances?

At present, our overall crowd attendance is not where it needs to be. We have to improve this aspect and we are confident that improved stadia will help make it attractive for families to feel good about going to watch live games. The TV broadcast can help us showcase our product and our improved facilities and help entice people to enjoy the live game experience.

What improved benefits will there be at PSL’s clubs?

As a league, we are putting a variety of measures in place to ensure the standard of the product matches the level of investment. This includes a pioneering initiative of a compliance manual being drafted by the head of competitions and executive member, Stanley Matthews. This will no doubt benefit our league. It will also be up to our clubs to ensure that they invest their increased resources wisely, as a PSL franchise is now worth millions.

The PSL carried a R60-million debt in 2002. It has managed to turn that sad state of affairs into one making a R20-million profit a year. How did you do it?

It has been a two-fold process. Firstly, as a League, we have taken responsibility in ensuring a better standard of operating and a high degree of Corporate Governance. This has resulted in increased confidence of the market and they have responded by valuing our product at the level we know it is worth. It has taken much hard work by many people to turn things around and we still believe the best is yet to come.

The PSL has just taken leave of the retiring chief executive officer of the Castle Premier League, Trevor Phillips. Are there plans to draw on his expertise?

We don’t encourage a throw-away culture in football and we are working hard to retain as much expertise as possible. It is only through developing and spreading knowledge that we can ensure a sustainable pipeline of talent both on and off the field. People like Trevor Phillips, Dan Leboa and Dr Leepile Taunyane continue to make a contribution while we blood new talent.

The English-born Phillips will be succeeded by the Norwegian Kjetil Siem. How difficult was it trying to land a South African instead?

The specific challenges we face right now require the most specialised of expertise. International broadcast and media experience, intertwined with extensive soccer knowledge make it difficult to find such a person. There were few South African candidates that had part of the qualities, but at this moment we could not afford to take unnecessary risks to the potential detriment of our league. We cannot afford to pay school fees while the rest of the world is watching. But we have learnt from this process and already embarked on a plan to unearth local talent to take the game forward beyond 2010. We are totally committed to this.

The PSL is on the verge of a new season. Last season, there were clashes with fixtures of Bafana Bafana when their coach was forced to do without key players. Can this be avoided?

The PSL fixture list has been designed with the international Fifa calendar dates in mind. We are aware that the national coach requires additional games for Bafana Bafana and have engaged Safa to try and accommodate their needs. If we stick to the international dates and respect our rules, there should be no problems.

One of the pleasing aspects of last season was the rise of clubs with relatively small followings, like Silver Stars (Castle League runners-up) and Ajax Cape Town (Absa Cup champions). How crucial are these achievements of so-called minnow clubs in the overall development of the PSL?

This competitive nature of our league is a sign of the raising of the standards. Clubs are implementing sound business plans to ensure they are competitive. It’s big business now. It is a healthy sign that you can never predict the outcome of any fixture.

One area that has been of concern to PSL fans is that foreign-born players are often listed among the Premier League’s leading goal scorers. Why are South Africans not dominating in this area on the domestic front?

We can consider many reasons for this trend. But in the end, it is also a function of the technical training that is now being implemented at the PSL clubs’ development structures. This has only taken off in the past few years, so we are confident that a new breed of better trained players will start emerging in the coming years. The players themselves also have to have the right mindset to achieve their goals. Players like Benni McCarthy and Shaun Bartlett achieved the required standard in Europe. The late Lesley Manyathela was headed in the same way. We must develop quality strikers in the league.

Diehard followers of individual clubs are always dismayed when PSL owners decide to sell their top players to foreign clubs. Is it purely a question of a money-making exercise? How does the PSL view this matter, considering clubs usually cannot replace these outward-bound players with a player of the same talent?

It’s important to look at all the stakeholders. As a club, we have the responsibility to our shareholders to produce returns. Equally, we want to be competitive for our sponsors and fans. But ultimately, we also have to consider the main asset – the player. Every player is entitled to his dream to play in Europe and to maximise his earnings. So we have to consider all these aspects when deciding to hold on to a player or sell him, remembering all the time that if his contract expires, you lose him for free with no return on investment and still with the challenge of replacing him. So it’s all about balance.

Leadership interview by Herman Gibbs

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