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The Football is ours to do as we will.
From the FIFA Big Count –
Jamaica
All Players - 168,494
Registered Players - 25,594
Unregistered Players - 142,900
Clubs - 274
Officials - 5,037
Source: http://www.fifa.com/worldfootball/bigcount/
http://www.fifa.com/worldfootball/bigcount/allplayers.html
It is not a stretch to assume that every Jamaican in Jamaica is in some manner touched/affected by our football. The brand, “our football” if you like, is a powerful one. Events in “our football” since it was introduced in the island in the 1800s has led to an endurable strong brand, perhaps even an embedded cultural phenomenon.
Financial poor health of our clubs equals insolvent club organisations that lends itself to poorly paid administrators, technical employees, players and other employees. Incidental or not incidental the result is poor quality football products.
An undisputed fact is our football needs infusion of “loads of money”. Increased funding at all levels of the game is critical. It is clear visually that our clubs are all “paupers” - some less so than others. The administrators have for too long buried their heads in the sand and failed to confront the reality of that situation.
Some would say - The big question is, what the administrators are going to do rectify the situation of struggling clubs, poor teams and players? The reality check starts with the administrators walking up and facing
the truth –
a) Our clubs are broke and they have been broke for as long as their existence.
b) The on-the-field product must be improved to a level whereby transfer of players to professional foreign clubs bring in needed funding. The funding brought in must be in such amounts that enable our clubs to become financially healthy.
The world has become terribly smaller with the advent of television broadcast and the internet. World standard of play is visible as teaching tool. It should not be too difficult for the club administrators and our players to identify top quality players and teams. It follows that it should not be too difficult for our “teachers”/coaches and the formerly blind administrators to have decision taken to “teach”/coach and mold our players and TEAMs to best standards using “best methods”.
Every day we hear of our educators striving for that “best standards” in their ongoing work of shaping young minds in delivery “methods” of quality education. Every day our corporate entities tout “best practices”.
Why not an introduction of “best methods” and “best practices” through to creation of and delivery of “quality products” on our football field?
There has always been this argument on which comes first the chicken or the egg. As it pertains to our football there is no doubt that “sale” of players on a massive scale will fund clubs leading to eventual creation of profitable club entities. Who among us would doubt that the cycle of ever increasing the quality of players and teams lead to ever increasing opportunities to “sell” players and ever increasing possibilities of improved club revenues, which lead to ever increasing on-the-field football products?
It is really simple; our clubs must produce quality products of players and teams thereby creating increased demand for the players in greater number of football markets. There is also not to be discounted the fact of quality products demanding highest prices.
What are the clubs to do?
i) First confront the reality that if top world standard of play is the aim, the product they have thus far created is poor.
ii) The survival of the clubs and the development of quality clubs depend on producing best quality player-products for the international markets.
iii) There must be a single-minded approach to produce top quality set of players and teams.
It is that simple.
Currently we have the totally ridiculous situation where winning the Premier League is more important than affording players opportunity to ply their trade in professional leagues outside of the island and gaining upwards social mobility and financial security. Winning the Premier League is more important than putting clubs on a sound financial footing? Ridiculous!
That attitude of winning the Premier League before all else, among other things, puts on display the lack of ambition of the clubs as it underscores the administrators negative perceptions of their ability to consistently produce ever increasing quantity and quality of marketable players – “best products”. This brings us back to “The reality check”. That reality check of the administrators walking up and facing the truth –
1) Our clubs are broke and have been broke for as long as their existence.
2) The on-the-field product must be improved to a level whereby transfer of players to professional foreign clubs bring in needed funding. That funding is needed such that our clubs can become financially healthy. Indeed, widely financially healthy.
It is that simple, let us take a look at and a page from one of our most successful entities, GraceKennedy.
With apologies to GraceKennedy and use as telling example –
GraceKennedy is one of the Caribbean's largest and most dynamic corporate entities. The company started in Jamaica in 1922 as a small trading establishment and wharf operators. It has expanded and diversified over the years.
Today, the GraceKennedy Group comprises a varied network of some 60 subsidiaries and associated companies located across the Caribbean and elsewhere.
GraceKennedy developed a 2020 Vision, with the objective being to transform from a Jamaican trading company to a global entity with roots in Jamaica.
GraceKennedy is substantially larger and stronger, measured by growth in revenues, productivity, profits and market value. GraceKennedy’s mission continues to be, 'To satisfy the unmet needs…
- That is GraceKennedy.
Football is our business.
Karl Wallace is a football scout. He is also a consultant to football clubs. He can be reached at wallo19213@gmail.com
From the FIFA Big Count –
Jamaica
All Players - 168,494
Registered Players - 25,594
Unregistered Players - 142,900
Clubs - 274
Officials - 5,037
Source: http://www.fifa.com/worldfootball/bigcount/
http://www.fifa.com/worldfootball/bigcount/allplayers.html
It is not a stretch to assume that every Jamaican in Jamaica is in some manner touched/affected by our football. The brand, “our football” if you like, is a powerful one. Events in “our football” since it was introduced in the island in the 1800s has led to an endurable strong brand, perhaps even an embedded cultural phenomenon.
Financial poor health of our clubs equals insolvent club organisations that lends itself to poorly paid administrators, technical employees, players and other employees. Incidental or not incidental the result is poor quality football products.
An undisputed fact is our football needs infusion of “loads of money”. Increased funding at all levels of the game is critical. It is clear visually that our clubs are all “paupers” - some less so than others. The administrators have for too long buried their heads in the sand and failed to confront the reality of that situation.
Some would say - The big question is, what the administrators are going to do rectify the situation of struggling clubs, poor teams and players? The reality check starts with the administrators walking up and facing
the truth –
a) Our clubs are broke and they have been broke for as long as their existence.
b) The on-the-field product must be improved to a level whereby transfer of players to professional foreign clubs bring in needed funding. The funding brought in must be in such amounts that enable our clubs to become financially healthy.
The world has become terribly smaller with the advent of television broadcast and the internet. World standard of play is visible as teaching tool. It should not be too difficult for the club administrators and our players to identify top quality players and teams. It follows that it should not be too difficult for our “teachers”/coaches and the formerly blind administrators to have decision taken to “teach”/coach and mold our players and TEAMs to best standards using “best methods”.
Every day we hear of our educators striving for that “best standards” in their ongoing work of shaping young minds in delivery “methods” of quality education. Every day our corporate entities tout “best practices”.
Why not an introduction of “best methods” and “best practices” through to creation of and delivery of “quality products” on our football field?
There has always been this argument on which comes first the chicken or the egg. As it pertains to our football there is no doubt that “sale” of players on a massive scale will fund clubs leading to eventual creation of profitable club entities. Who among us would doubt that the cycle of ever increasing the quality of players and teams lead to ever increasing opportunities to “sell” players and ever increasing possibilities of improved club revenues, which lead to ever increasing on-the-field football products?
It is really simple; our clubs must produce quality products of players and teams thereby creating increased demand for the players in greater number of football markets. There is also not to be discounted the fact of quality products demanding highest prices.
What are the clubs to do?
i) First confront the reality that if top world standard of play is the aim, the product they have thus far created is poor.
ii) The survival of the clubs and the development of quality clubs depend on producing best quality player-products for the international markets.
iii) There must be a single-minded approach to produce top quality set of players and teams.
It is that simple.
Currently we have the totally ridiculous situation where winning the Premier League is more important than affording players opportunity to ply their trade in professional leagues outside of the island and gaining upwards social mobility and financial security. Winning the Premier League is more important than putting clubs on a sound financial footing? Ridiculous!
That attitude of winning the Premier League before all else, among other things, puts on display the lack of ambition of the clubs as it underscores the administrators negative perceptions of their ability to consistently produce ever increasing quantity and quality of marketable players – “best products”. This brings us back to “The reality check”. That reality check of the administrators walking up and facing the truth –
1) Our clubs are broke and have been broke for as long as their existence.
2) The on-the-field product must be improved to a level whereby transfer of players to professional foreign clubs bring in needed funding. That funding is needed such that our clubs can become financially healthy. Indeed, widely financially healthy.
It is that simple, let us take a look at and a page from one of our most successful entities, GraceKennedy.
With apologies to GraceKennedy and use as telling example –
GraceKennedy is one of the Caribbean's largest and most dynamic corporate entities. The company started in Jamaica in 1922 as a small trading establishment and wharf operators. It has expanded and diversified over the years.
Today, the GraceKennedy Group comprises a varied network of some 60 subsidiaries and associated companies located across the Caribbean and elsewhere.
GraceKennedy developed a 2020 Vision, with the objective being to transform from a Jamaican trading company to a global entity with roots in Jamaica.
GraceKennedy is substantially larger and stronger, measured by growth in revenues, productivity, profits and market value. GraceKennedy’s mission continues to be, 'To satisfy the unmet needs…
- That is GraceKennedy.
Football is our business.
Karl Wallace is a football scout. He is also a consultant to football clubs. He can be reached at wallo19213@gmail.com