Nike may get to sponsor Bafana's shirts

Business Day learnt yesterday that while Adidas will have the right of first refusal when its contract with Safa expires at the end of the year, the two parties could go their separate ways after Nike made a presentation that impressed the football association.

Safa vice-president Chief Mwelo Nonkonyana revealed that several other sports companies were queuing up to replace Adidas but Nike appeared to have the lead.

"Our contract with Adidas is about to come to an end and that means we are open to offers," Nonkonyana said in his trademark forthright manner. "We will start with them (Adidas) because they have rights of first refusal but if we feel that our value is higher than what they offer us, then obviously we will have to look elsewhere."

Controversy

Fiery parliamentary sports committee chairman Butana Komphela said he would be "very happy" if Safa did indeed dump Adidas after the controversy surrounding the missing protea emblem from the Bafana jersey last year.

"I have always wanted them (Adidas) to lose that contract because they did not treat our national symbol (the protea) with respect," the outspoken Komphela said last night.

"They made us a laughing stock and it is good riddance. Let them go, thank you very much.

"I would not be surprised if Safa decided to get rid of them because it has been a long time coming.

"Let us stick with organisations that will respect our national emblems from now on and if Nike is that organisation, then so be it."

Strained relations

Relations between Safa and Adidas have been strained ever since revelations that the old Safa regime - led by former president Molefi Oliphant - tried to cut costs and told Adidas last year that the replica jersey should no longer be produced with the protea emblem.

Safa paid the Department of Sport and Recreation about R100000 in royalties a year for using the protea emblem - depending on the number of internationals the national team play - at that time and Oliphant decided to do away with the national symbol.

Safa president Kirsten Nematandani said at the time that the new leadership - which came into office after winning a bitterly contested Safa election last September - had inherited many decisions that were taken by their predecessors and the emblem debacle was one of them.

But Adidas marketing director Gavin Cowley said last night that it would be surprised if the association based its decision on the next Bafana kit sponsors on the protea emblem debacle. "The decision to omit the protea from the Bafana replica jersey was taken by the previous Safa regime and we certainly did not hold the current leadership responsible for that decision," Cowley said.

"In any case, we thought that whole issue was behind us and we had all moved forward."

Extension?

Insiders said the Adidas bosses themselves were not pleased with Safa as the revised contract extension they had submitted had - to date - still not been acknowledged by the association.

Confounding matters for Adidas is the fact that Safa has not even given a hint as to whether it will extend the deal or not.

Indications are that while the two parties have been together since 1998, the German company might actually be glad to see the back of Safa after clashing over various issues over the years.

"A contract has been offered to Safa and it is up to them as to whether to take it forward or not," Cowley said.

"It is really up to Safa and I suppose at some stage they will have to inform us if we are continuing this relationship or not.

"We live in a world where people are able to make the decision they want to make."

Nike says nothing

Nike SA marketing director Mzamo Masito pleaded ignorance about the possibility of taking over the Bafana kit sponsorship but said he did not rule out the possibility of a deal happening in the future.

"We are not in any discussions with Safa over the Bafana kit sponsorship at the moment," Masito told Business Day.

"We have not had that conversation here at Nike yet, but I certainly cannot predict the future.

"I cannot say we will never do that in the future, because who knows what will happen in the future," Masito said.

None of the Bafana replica jerseys that were produced before the start of the World Cup had the protea emblem on them.

Source: Business Day