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SAFA receives welcome boost

Johannesburg - The new executive committee of the SA Football Association (SAFA) received a vote of confidence when financial services giant Ernst and Young (EY) teamed up with the sport in Johannesburg on Thursday.

"Corporate governance in sport is a major area of debate in South Africa and the rest of the world. It is no longer a luxury, it’s a necessity," SAFA president Danny Jordaan said.

Safa had taken a huge step to instil and restore confidence, he said, after the organisation had seen two major sponsors pull out recently.

German sportswear company Puma and banking giant Absa withdrew their sponsorship from SAFA in light of match-fixing allegations.

"Match fixing is a global problem and, unfortunately for the new leadership, we have inherited this situation but we cannot stop doing what we have been tasked to do," Jordaan said.

Elected into the top post at the end of September, Jordaan said the partnership with the accountancy firm came about barely two months into the new leadership's term of office.

"Not a single member of the new executive is implicated in any wrong doing. We have men and women of integrity in Safa and more sponsorship announcements can be expected in the near future.

"The fundamentals (of corporate governance) must be in place if we are serious about growing revenue."

As the former CEO of the 2010 FIFA World Cup hosted in South Africa, Jordaan said the pessimism surrounding SAFA was misplaced.

"I handled in the region of US3.2-billion (approximately R32-billion) and I accounted for every penny."

Ajen Sita, CEO for EY Africa expressed satisfaction that his company had teamed up with an organisation on its way up.

"SAFA is outsourcing the management of its finances to us and we have the necessary skills and personnel to safeguard the assets of football," Sita said.

The firm offered SAFA elements of corporate governance, accounting and control methods which would underpin the growth of their partnership, EY would benefit from global exposure at international games.

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