RABAT, MOROCCO: South African Billionaire and Africa’s ninth richest person Patrice Motsepe has been confirmed as the new Confederation of African Football (CAF) President.
This was confirmed during the 43rd Ordinary CAF General Assembly in Rabat, Morocco on Friday.
Motsepe, who is the owner of South African giants Mamelodi Sundowns, was elected unopposed to replace outgoing Ahmad Ahmad, whose three-year reign promised much but was ultimately mottled by accusations of nepotism, corruption and embezzlement.
The 59-year-old Motsepe’s ascent to the pinnacle of African football comes following intervention by Fifa president Gianni Infantino, who reportedly supervised the brokering of a deal with the other candidates.
Shortly after his confirmation, Motsepe pleaded for unity from all member states as he seeks to fix the troubled organisation.
“Africa needs collective wisdom, but also the exceptional talent and wisdom of every (national football association) president and every member nation,” he said.
“When we all work together, football in Africa will experience success and growth that it has not enjoyed in the past.”
In a 10-point manifesto released ahead of the withdrawal of his presidential rivals, Motsepe outlined that good governance, investment in Africa’s sporting infrastructure and statutory reforms would be among his top priorities after taking up the appointment.
He becomes the eighth president of CAF since 1957.
He also becomes the first person from an English-speaking country and only the second from Southern Africa to be elected president.
Motsepe, who is the 9th richest man in Africa with a personal wealth estimated at $2.9 billion (2.4 billion euros) by Forbes magazine owns.
Motsepe’s first assignment will be to reclaim the broadcasting rights of African football which are controlled by French companies. Currently, media rights to all African qualifiers for the FIFA World Cup 2022 in Qatar, are managed under a centralised sales model by FIFA.
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