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NPL gets hold of the wrong end of the stick

2016-07-08  Staff Report 2

NPL gets hold of the wrong end of the stick
The clearly worn-out utterance by charismatic MTC Premiership chairman, one Johnny ‘JJD’ Doeseb, claiming that Namibian football is an untapped gold mine is seriously becoming nauseating, to say the least. This is typical clinging to things, referred to as the Endowment Effect in the lingo of academics. Yours truly knows a little about football and to me, this is a cock and bull story, but obviously my learned colleague Doeseb would not budge an inch. The endowment effect is palpable, as sellers would become emotionally attached to their assets - thus systematically overestimate their real values. Let’s safely say that those who claim Namibian football to be an industry are missing the point big time and need their heads examined. While in developed leagues, football is regarded as an industry – it’s totally the other way around here. Truth be told, our football, in particular the MTC Premiership, is a product in her infant stages with television being the industry. If the MTC Premiership is an industry or a much sought-after commodity as so loosely advocated by its motor-mouth chairman, why does it continue to fail to exercise leverage in sponsorship negotiations? I’m just asking. As it stands, Namibian football is at the crossroads with the advanced ultimatum by its principal sponsor MTC to find alternative partners or face the prospect of losing everything. It would be a catastrophe should MTC pull out of negotiations. The moment potential sponsors are leveraged, then we should know we are completely handicapped because this exercise will take us back to the old adage that the one paying the bills calls the shots. There is a sickening tendency of stumbling when estimating probabilities. If someone says ‘never’, others would usually register this as a minuscule probability greater than zero, since ‘never’ cannot be compensated by a negative probability. Namibians and the entire business fraternity should take note and realize the beautiful game of football in our beloved land of the Brave is not just a game. Football is a religion in this country, notably among the marginalized masses. Without beating about the bush, let us challenge our lawmakers to roll up their sleeves and throw their frames behind this potentially life-threatening situation. Dear readers, please pardon my ignorance but football is serious business, it’s much bigger than what many people think. Although our topflight league, the MTC Premiership, is not a fully-fledged professional set-up yet – football contributes a lot to alleviating our uneven economic distribution while easing the burden off the accelerating unemployment rate amongst the youth. A significant number of footballers plying their trade in our domestic elite league use the little moolah they earn from the game to sustain their extended families. Is it perhaps not time for lawmakers to introduce laws and regulations compelling some of our stinking rich corporate businesses to plough their fat profits back into needy communities through football? I’m just asking. Surely, if strict laws are passed to oblige the corporate world to pump large amounts of money into football, it will assist government in minimizing crime and poverty. Young people involved in sporting activities are always focused and never indulge in unbecoming behaviour, while girls actively involved in sports are unlikely to fall pregnant. I rest my case.
2016-07-08  Staff Report 2

Tags: Khomas
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