South African football needs transparency if the playing fields are to be evened out, writes former Bafana Bafana and AmaZulu forward George Dearnaley in SoccerClub magazine. 

There have always been problematic issues in local football when it comes to financial information. Clubs are often reluctant to disclose what they pay for players, what player salaries are and what their bonus structures are.

It’s understandable to a degree; professional football is a very competitive business and your financial muscle, or lack thereof, is often at the core of your business model. It is no surprise that the Gauteng clubs are the wealthiest and are considered the ‘buying’ clubs of South Africa.

The rest of them are the ‘selling’ clubs – in other words, they can’t keep their best players because they can’t afford to compete with the salaries up north. Not so long ago only Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates were considered the buying clubs, due to their large fan base and their big sponsorship deals, but recently they have been joined by Bidvest Wits, SuperSport United and Mamelodi Sundowns.

The financial strength of these clubs has added significantly to the competitiveness of the PSL. No longer are the ‘big two’ guaranteed to get the star players from the smaller clubs – there is plenty of competition for the top talent. But while the on-field competition is healthy for the game, the lack of financial transparency is creating a situation whereby nobody trusts anyone.

Clubs won’t disclose their transfer fees, players won’t disclose their salaries and agents won’t disclose their commissions. The real question is whether this is good for the game or not? Supporters will be shocked to hear that some young PSL players are earning less than R10 000 a month. They can’t afford to own a car and pay a bond. Remember, it could be a very short career and most don’t have an education to fall back on. How will they survive once their careers are over?

I suspect clubs don’t disclose their fees because agents and players use those figures to keep pushing up their own terms. How many more times must we read about players crying foul over a contract they swear they never signed? How many more times must a club take a player to the Disciplinary Committee before their contract is honoured?

I believe the more accurate the information that’s available, the better the understanding – among supporters, players and club officials – of the contractual obligations of players and clubs. The less grey areas we have between the parties, the better. The only people who have anything to hide, are those who are not doing things the right way.

– This article first appeared in Issue 78 of SoccerClub magazine