Abomination

And so, this is it. FAM has said the working relationship with its influential affiliate, Super League of Malawi (Sulom), has become sour.

Football Association of Malawi (FAM) president Walter Nyamilandu said this yesterday  during the association’s  annual general meeting (AGM) in Nkhata Bay .

He said: “I am particularly concerned that the lack of a good working relationship between FAM and Sulom is coming at a heavy price.

“We must resolve this for the greater cause of football in Malawi.”

The FAM boss cited the standoff on the Mpira TV deal.

He said: “In its [Mpira TV] first year of inception, we have so far raked in K103 million. By any account, this is a significant sum.

“It is a signal of what we can realise as time goes, as long we keep doing the right things.

“This achievement regardless of progress on TV broadcasting and gate ticketing, still remains a challenge.

“Sadly, and as we are all aware, this is due in part to resistance to change in some quarters and misunderstandings between FAM and Sulom.”

Reacting to Nyamilandu’s sentiments, Sulom president Fleetwood Haiya said: “Sulom executive is only four months old in office and I wonder which Sulom is being alleged to be in conflict with FAM. If anything, sticky matters arising  between Sulom as an affiliate and FAM  being our mother body, would be settled amicably for the best interest of our game.

“Both Sulom and FAM are partners in the development of football; thus the narrative of conflict  should not even arise.”

Football analyst George Kaudza Masina said by bringing the issue in the open, FAM had exposed its weakness.

He said: “Sulom is an affiliate of FAM, it’s a parent and child relationship and a child cannot be bigger than a parent.

“So, if there are issues, FAM should call Sulom to a roundtable and iron out their differences. But the bottomline is that Sulom has never been bigger than FAM and, therefore, FAM should not be afraid of Sulom.”

In his speech, Nyamilandu also said despite some challenges, they have fulfilled most of the promises made in his Raising the Bar manifesto.

He said: “In doing so, I will be brutally honest about the challenges that remain for us to deal with to register even far much greater things for the game. 

“Today, as we gather for this Ordinary General Assembly, I am standing before you proud about what we have achieved under this campaign.

“I must say it firsthand that I am particularly encouraged by the fact that as a team, we have remained resolute during difficult times to deliver on this manifesto.

For this, to you all, to all of you who believed in the cause, I am forever grateful for your dedication.

Among others, Nyamilandu said women’s football in Malawi is on the path of growth.

He said: “Our budding talents and our attractive style of play are making headlines on both the domestic and international stage.

“This has not come by accident. What we are seeing today is the result of a raft of initiatives we have implemented, one of which is club licensing which requires Super League teams to have women football in their fold.

“This has ensured that women football teams are better managed and become more competitive through recruitment of quality players and capable coaches.”

Nyamilandu also boasted of having made football violence-free such “that families feel safe to go and sit in the stands to watch a football match”.

He said: “We have seen clubs demonstrating willingness to grow by embracing club licensing. This is bearing fruit as the top clubs are investing in youth teams and reserve teams. Such investment feeds into our plan for Malawi to produce good quality players for now and the future.

“Yet, despite that we have raised the bar of football, we still need to attract more sponsors for clubs. A number of our teams are struggling financially.”

He also said  there is a surge in rural football and the  catalyst is the introduction of the FAM District Cup and the resurgence of the FAM Motto Division One League.

Said Nyamilandu: “We are seeing a rising competitiveness in the regional leagues. For this to happen, FAM made deliberate interventions to sponsor district football to the tune of K100 million.

“We also took over the sponsorship of the Division One Motto League by pumping in K45 million.

“Further, we complemented sponsorship of the Premier League with prize money amounting to K5 million towards the regional champions.”

However, he acknowledged that the challenge remains on improving the capability of coaches and match referees.

On youth football, Nyamilandu said they have made breakthroughs in setting up structures for boys and girls of different age groups to play football and develop their talent.

“But in the absence of steady sponsorship, it was always going to be difficult to have a reliable platform of grooming talented players. However, we are delighted that we are now able to embark on such a fundamental campaign by making significant investment into the youth through increased Fifa Forward funding.”

He also said FAM has developed a good working relationship with Malawi Schools Sports Association  which led to Salima Secondary School winning bronze at the Africa Schools Championship.

On beach soccer, Nyamilandu said it has become one of the most successful stories of Malawi football, citing Africa Cup of Nations Beach Soccer Championship qualification.

He further said FAM is  encouraged with the increase of female match referees in domestic fixtures.

“Despite making such good progress, the standard of match officiation in some cases remains a concern.”

“In addition, we have all heard allegations of bribery and corruption against some of our whistle blowers. FAM hopes that law-enforcement agencies will investigate such claims and those involved brought to account.”