The domestic football transfer window hardly passes without disputes which jeopardise players’ careers while clubs spend a fortune on botched deals, the Weekend Nation research has revealed.
For the past five seasons, each transfer window has had at least a high-profile transfer wrangle
between clubs or between a player and a club, which Football Association of Malawi (FAM) player status and transfer committee had to resolve.
Our findings show that recent high-profile transfer wrangles involving TNM Super League players Hassan Kajoke, Vitumbiko Kumwenda, Clement Nyondo and, more recently Promise Kamwendo, are just a tip of the iceberg of transfer market challenges.
Mighty Mukuru Wanderers top the list of controversial transfer deals.
FAM club licensing and compliance manager Casper Jangale said in an interview that the root cause of the problem is that Malawian clubs still believe in archaic player-transfer practices.
He said: “The problem is that our clubs don’t believe in spending when they want a player. They don’t believe in honest business. A club will do everything possible to get the player they want without spending much.
“Most of the times, clubs don’t want to pay transfer fee. They would rather pay the player the signing-on
fee and use every trick not to pay the parent club the transfer fee.”
controversial deal
Jangale said manipulation of contracts is also a common practice by clubs that want to sign a player as a free agent to run away from paying a transfer fee.
He said: “That’s why you have a player claiming he is a free agent when he is not. In the past this was working, but not now since FAM keeps copies of all players’ original contracts.”
In other cases, players have also been caught in the web of transfer wrangles
after pocketing money from two clubs.
“These are even more common. A club will entice a player with money off the book. Another club will come and do the same. All this happens off record. When the player decides not to join them, it becomes an issue,” said Jangale.
According to Fifa regulations, a club interested in a player contracted to a club must first inform the parent club of its intention in writing.
The parent club, if interested, will give consent to the club intending to buy the player to start negotiations with the player to agree personal terms.
Once the player and the buying club agree on personal terms, then the player informs his club in writing to go ahead and seal the deal.
Football Players Association general secretary Ernest Mangani also said clubs deliberately flout the transfer regulations as a cost-cutting measure.
He said: “There are rules in this market, but it seems this issue is out of control. No one seems to appreciate that there are strict rules and that no party can break them. FAM needs to put a stop to this. It needs to accept that it has neglected the player-transfer market to the effect that every Jim and Jack can transact.
“Clubs benefit a lot in exploitation of players because it is a cost-cutting mechanism and an unfair income maximising strategy. Clubs first of all must stop the tendency of tapping players and the practice of brainwashing the players and threatening them in order to capture them into their teams.
“Clubs must follow Fifa best practices and rules while FAM and Sulom must police the same. No club should indulge in discussions with a player who does not have a legitimate representative duly accredited by the market to deal in player-transfers so that there is quality.”
However, Mangani also cautioned players against getting carried away by clubs or individuals that prefer shortcuts in transfer issues.
“Players themselves need to realise that football is their career and they cannot expose themselves to practices that jeopardise their future,” he said.
Cephus Bennie Lingani of CGL Sports Agency, a player management firm with over 15 clients from TNM Super League clubs, said the player transfer challenges are mainly due to players lacking guidance.
He said: “There is a lot of corruption in the transfers market. The challenge is that big teams want shortcuts when they want to sign a player. They deliberately
flout procedures which are very clear.
“Clubs deliberately go behind the parent club and start discussing the transfer issues with the player. This is player-tapping and it is illegal.
“If a player is shallow-minded, he can easily end up pocketing money and promising to join the club without the knowledge of his parent club. Some even sign contracts behind their parent club.
“My advice to the players is to stop underrating their clubs. Never talk to another club without the consent of your club. If you have a proper manager, listen to his advice.
“To the players’ managers, please do not allow to be used by clubs who want to use short-cuts in your players‘ transfers. The same applies to clubs. Please respect parent clubs.”
Some high-profile transfer disputes
in the past five seasons
Blue Eagles vs Wanderers over Vitumbiko Kumwenda (2020)
In 2020, Vitumbiko Kumwenda was at the centre of controversy in a transfer wrangle between his club Blue Eagles and Wanderers.
Eagles initially wanted K8 million for Kumwenda, but the offer was reduced to K5 million and later K3.5 million. However, Wanderers insisted on paying K3 million.
After Wanderers and Eagles failed to reach an agreement on a transfer fee, the Malawi Police Service outfit went on to pocket K3.5 million from Silver Strikers for the same player.
However, Kumwenda took matters in his hands and signed for the Lali Lubani outfit despite having a running contract with the police side.
Eagles lodged a complaint with FAM and the association ruled in their favour. Kumwenda eventually joined the Nomads after Eagles decided to clear him.
Wanderers Vs Bullets over Babatunde Adepoju (2021)
Striker Babatunde Adepoju had his share of the agony of Malawi’s player-transfer drama.
In 2021, Wanderers offloaded the Nigerian who eventually joined Bullets only for the Lali Lubani Road outfit to claim that the player was just transfer-listed and was still contracted to them.
FAM players’ status committee had to step in to arbitrate on the matter and Bullets and Wanderers agreed on a K3.5 million compensation.
Silver Strikers vs Bullets over Hassan Kajoke (2022)
In 2023, Kajoke signed a contract with Silver after allegedly telling the Bankers that his contract with FCB Nyasa Bullets had expired.
But this was challenged by Bullets who claimed the player had a running contract with the club which was due to expire on March 31 2023 and not on December 31 2022 as claimed by Silver Strikers.
Despite pocketing K3.9 million from Silver, Kajoke reversed his decision to join the Bankers and extended his contract with Bullets, forcing Silver to complain to FAM which ruled that the player must pay back the money.
Wanderers vs Dedza Dynamos over Promise Kamwendo (2024)
In the famous case involving Kamwendo, the player reportedly committed to join Bullets and his club Premier Bet Dedza Dynamos pocketed K3 million transfer fee only for the player to make a U-turn and sign for Wanderers.
Kamwendo disappeared on the day he was expected to travel to Blantyre to join Bullets only to be unveiled by their rivals after signing a three-year deal. Dedza and the player’s manager distanced themselves from the deal although Wanderers paid K3.5 million
