26/03/2005 22:41 - (SA)
Hayatou calls for financial backing
ISSA HAYATOU
THE mascot for the 2006 African Cup of Nations was unveiled by the organising committee this week.
The mascot has been nicknamed "Croconile" and represents a crocodile from the Nile River which runs through 10 African countries and has its outlet in Egypt.
Croconile's Pharaonic crown and collar reflect Egypt's valuable history. The colour of Croconile represents Africa's green pastures while his yellow body reflects the huge Sahara Desert which covers much of the northern part of the continent.
The ceremony also honoured previous generations of Egyptian players who had led the Pharaohs to four Nations Cup victories in 1957, 1959, 1986 and 1998.
The 16-team tournament will be held from January 20 until February 10, 2006 in the cities of Cairo, Alexandria, Port Said and Ismailia.
Meanwhile, Confederation of African Football (CAF) president, Issa Hayatou of Cameroon, has appealed to private enterprise to participate in the development of football.
Speaking in Paris, Hayatou said the US$2.5-million (about R15 million) grant Caf received from Fifa annually was inadequate.
He cited Nigerian cellphone company Globacom as an example of how the private sector could help in the improvement of African soccer. Globacon will invest funds from private sponsors into training and infrastructures.
On Friday, Caf and Globacom signed a partnership agreement under which the Nigerian mobile telephone operator will be the sole sponsor of the CAF Awards over the next five years.
Hayatou urged African coaches and players on the continent to persevere on the path towards "excellence".
SENEGAL
ONE of the west African country's oldest football clubs, Diaraf Dakar, has decided to cut the wages and bonuses of players and staff.
The move follows Diaraf's early exit from this year's Champions League at the hands of Fello Star Labe from Guinea.
Although football in Senegal is still officially an amateur game, many clubs pay their players and offer them financial incentives.
"We have to be realistic, we have objectives to achieve and we are not a club subsidised or owned by big business," Ass Mamoune Sèye, secretary-general of the club said.
GHANA
MINING company Goldfields Ghana has taken over the financial responsibility of the Ghana senior national football team with a US$3 million (about R18 million) budget over three years.
At a ceremony in Accra this week, an agreement to that effect was signed by Yaw Osafo Maafo, education and sports minister and Brendan Walker, managing director of the mining giant.
Maafo said the sponsorship package from Goldfields would cover bonuses of the Black Stars players, salaries and bonuses of the technical team and preparations for competitions.
He said it was necessary to inject private capital into sports since government alone could not bear the huge financial demands of the sector and he praised Goldfields for its initiative.
Walker said it was imperative for the players and officials of the Black Stars to reciprocate the gesture of his company by dedicating themselves to the cause of the nation with good performances and positive results.
The Black Stars play the Democratic Republie of Congo in the 2006 joint World Cup/African Cup of Nations qualifier in Kinshasa today.
ZAMBIA
PRESIDENT Levy Mwanawasa has condemned the use of drugs by its soccer players.
Zambia's head of state has also urged the country's football association to urgently find a solution to the problem.
Two South African-based Zambian players, Harry Milanzi and Francis Kombe, have tested positive for cannabis in the past two months.
Milanzi has been handed a six-month ban by the South African Football Association, a punishment that has been endorsed by Fifa.
Kombe is yet to hear his fate.
Mwanawasa took advantage of his trip to the Copperbelt province to launch a US$600 000 (about R3.6 million) sponsorship deal for the Zambian league to denounce drug usage.
The deal will see KCM put in about R1.2 million a year into the league for the next three years and is the first sponsorship deal for the Zambian league for 10 years.
The league has been renamed KCM-Faz League.
CONGO
CONGO'S football authorities have this week named Gaston Tchangana and former captain Celestin Mouyabi to take charge of their World Cup qualifier against Zambia which was to be played yesterday.
Tchangana had a brief spell in charge of the side in 2001 but was replaced after Congo's 2-1 home loss to Tunisia in a World Cup qualifier.
Mouyabi, who played professional football in France, captained the national team at the 1992 African Nations Cup finals in Senegal.
The pair replace Frenchman Christian Letard who was sacked last month for criticising the Congo Football Federation .
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