DANNY JORDAAN: THE ALUMNUS WHO AWAKENED AFRO-OPTIMISM THROUGH FOOTBALL

DANNY JORDAAN: THE ALUMNUS WHO AWAKENED AFRO-OPTIMISM THROUGH FOOTBALL Football is often seen as the glue that binds Africa. And SAFA President Danny Jordaan is here to ensure it reignites African pride, too

By Lynne Rippenaar-Moses

When South African Football Association (SAFA) President Dr Danny Jordaan submitted South Africa’s first bid in 2000 to host the FIFA Soccer World Cup, it was more than just an attempt to bring one of football’s most prestigious events to African shores. It was a deliberate act to reawaken Afro-optimism on the continent.

South Africa lost the 2000 bid to Germany by a single vote — yet Jordaan was undeterred. He simply bid again four years later and, in the presence of the late President Nelson Mandela and Archbishop Desmond Tutu, watched as South Africa was selected as the first African country to host a World Cup in the 101-year history of FIFA.

“My life has always thrown very difficult challenges at me,” says Jordaan, “but what I have learnt over the years is that if there is a goal to be achieved that is worthwhile and in the interest of the people then there is no time to surrender or retreat.”

With South Africa at the dawn of its democracy, Jordaan wanted to counter Afro-pessimism in South Africa, the continent and abroad through the World Cup by demonstrating the skills, knowledge and capabilities of South Africans and Africans to successfully host such events.

In an attempt to obtain Botswana’s support for the second bid, he participated in a media briefing in the country. When he left the briefing, he was stopped by a journalist who had one more question to ask.

“He wanted to know if I really thought that South Africa could compete against Germany and England and win. He said: ‘Do you think you can match them?’ I told him: ‘I am not going to match them, I am going to be better than them’.

“We can be African and world-class — there is no

contradiction between the two.”

But still, there were many countries, says Jordaan, who were unconvinced that South Africa could host the World Cup, with some even calling for a back-up plan in case the country failed.

In the end, the naysayers were wrong. South Africa hosted a successful World Cup, injecting an estimated R93 billion into its local economy. Of the 306 000 tourists that visited South Africa for the World Cup, 90 percent indicated they would return and 96 percent would also encourage family and friends to visit the country. National roads and

airports were upgraded, more money was invested in transport like the Gautrain and rapid bus transport systems, and more jobs were created. South Africa’s brand awareness and perception had also been improved.

Sports and social consciousness go hand-in-hand for Jordaan. While completing a Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree at the University of the Western Cape (UWC), he became the first-ever first-year student to play football for UWC’s first team. Here he got involved in the South African Students’ Organisation (SASO), which was founded by anti-apartheid activist Steve Biko, and interacted with players such as Henry Eric Isaacs, who was the UWC Football Club’s Chairperson and later became SASO’s Vice President, and Peter Jones, the club’s Secretary who

established the SASO branch at UWC. He also played interdistrict soccer and cricket for the University and Western Province Cricket.

He credits UWC with helping him develop his social consciousness and gaining a range of skills that he would need for many of the positions he would fill over the years — from serving as the president or vice-president of various football boards to being appointed as the Director of the Cape Town Olympic Bid Company and CEO of SAFA. He also worked as a teacher, lecturer, chairperson of the Port Elizabeth North ANC branch and as a member of South Africa’s Parliament.

Today, as President of SAFA, Jordaan is proud to see that many of the national soccer teams’ players originate from UWC, with many of those Banyana Banyana players, including the likes of Thembi Kgatlana and Jermaine Seoposenwe, both of whom currently play professional football overseas.

“The institution has made a significant contribution to South African women’s soccer and we want to see UWC strengthen its football academy to make an even bigger impact,” he says.

Jordaan’s love for sports equals his passion for supporting sports players to access and obtain a good education. “Sports players retire at about 35 but in SA, the retirement age is 65. This is why it is important for sports players to start thinking and planning for their second career while they are still in their first.

“At the moment, 80 percent

of our Banyana Banyana players are graduates, however, SAFA still has work to do amongst the Bafana Bafana players to ensure we can help our players move from the locker room to the boardroom when they stop playing football one day.”

Through SAFA, Jordaan is also focused on strengthening

professional soccer from the ground up. “Our under-17 girls and boys went to the World Cup for the first time this year.

“Our under-20 boys went to two consecutive World Cups while our Banyana Banyana team was in the final in the African Cup of Nations (AFCON) and went to the World Cup in France for the first

WE WANT TO SEE UWC STRENGTHEN ITS FOOTBALL ACADEMY TO MAKE AN EVEN BIGGER IMPACT

time. Our men’s team went to two consecutive Olympics in Rio and now qualified for Tokyo, while Bafana was in the quarter-final of the African Cup of Nations (AFCON). We also have 20 female players playing at the best clubs in the world.”

SAFA has focused strongly on gender equity by increasing the number of women within its governance structures (395) and increasing the number of women referees to 270. It has established a national women’s league and has trained the first female officials to officiate in the Premier Soccer League (PSL) matches while ensuring all female national teams are coached by South African women. SAFA has also improved the quality of refereeing at all levels and the development of qualified coaches.

Yet, in spite of all these achievements, what Jordaan is most proud of is “to have been shaped by an institution like UWC”.