The Confederation of African Football (CAF) president Patrice Motsepe has shown his support to accelerate the feasibility study of the African Supranational League project. The development was confirmed during the CAF Executive Committee’s meeting held last weekend, July 16, in Rabat, Morocco. The idea of the African Super League is to have a unique league with highly rated teams that will attract sponsors and broadcast rights. It is a project that was welcomed by Rwanda’s top clubs which expect to see the project benefit African Football by attracting sponsors and pushing the game on the continent to an elite level. Although his club hasn’t been consulted on the project yet, APR FC vice-chairman and club spokesperson, Brig. Gen. Firmin Bayingana, said the club administration is looking forward to hearing from the local governing football body (Ferwafa)’s take on the new project before discussing about it internally. “We heard of the CAF decision on the Continent Super League project but we haven’t discussed it because it’s not a decision that involves only one person but the club administration since it involves financial resources and other criteria that teams are required to be part of the league,” Bayingana told Times Sport. The African Super League project was among the resolutions approved by CAF’s Executive Committee in a meeting which Rwanda Football Federation (Ferwafa) boss Olivier Nizeyimana attended. The meeting was chaired by CAF president Patrice Motsepe who is convinced the league will be part of CAF’s plans to not only reshape African club football and take it to the next level but also involve sponsors to pay the right to broadcast the league. AS Kigali is another club that will represent Rwanda at next season’s CAF Confederation Cup. The club president, Fabrice Shema, said, though he doesn’t have much details about the new league, the essences of the African Super League will benefit clubs financially, improve competitiveness and show the world the football talents that Africa has at its disposal. “I hope it’s a decision that CAF member associations came to an agreement but hopefully, the league itself is a good move for African football. There might be a level of performance that will be considered for a club to take part in the league and other criteria which we don’t know yet but I believe the implementation of the project will open opportunities,” he said. Shema sees the new continental league pushing African clubs to work harder so they can find themselves on that level to be considered among the African clubs eligible for the African Super League. He said that African football associations supported the project because they were convinced it’s not a project that is coming to put some aside and benefit a certain group of clubs just like the ‘flopped’ European Super League project intended to. Instead, he said, more clubs could fight for a spot in the Continental Super League not just because of its finances but because they want to be recognized among Africa’s best. “The clubs could benefit from the league financially but I think the majority will be happier to take part in a league of elite clubs. It’s also a league where we could see Africa’s new talents rise and establish themselves at a bigger stage,” he added. Moses Niyigena, a football supporter, said that African Super League project could push African football to another level as well as attract sponsors to put in resources intended to empower African clubs. “I think it’s a good move which comes at the right time. We are talking about a project that is in line to both improve competition in African football and benefit clubs ready to participate in the league,” he said. CAF is yet to determine clubs to take part in the African Super League nor when the league will take shape.
