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Al-Ahram Weekly 22 - 28 June 2000 Issue No. 487 
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Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Al-Ahram Weekly 22 - 28 June 2000 Issue No. 487
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| Published in Cairo by AL-AHRAM established in 1875 |
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Egypt Region International Economy Focus Opinion Culture Features Travel Living Sports Profile People Time Out Chronicles Cartoons Letters Putting the clubhouse in order
By Alaa ShahineNew regulations sanctioned by the Egyptian Football Association (EFA) look to present at least a semblance of normalcy in an otherwise disorderly system which has little rhyme or reason. Several parties are already crying foul.
The object of the new charter, 25 articles long, is to clarify and regulate the relationship between player and club, not an easy matter given a system entrenched in archaic institutions and thought. Ever since the 1990 World Cup in which Egypt played and after which many of its players travelled to the greener pastures of Europe, calls have gone up to create a professional system that Egypt could call its own. But in trying to emulate, even remotely, what other countries do, problems have come thick and fast in Egypt, especially where money is concerned. Players expect sky-high fees for training much less than their counterparts abroad. Unable to meet their requests, clubs have often butted heads with their players off the field. The clashes have made headlines as much as on the field performances.
The modern-day charter presumes to at least partially resolve the issue. It stipulates, for one, that the registering of any player shall be done subject to a contract issued by the EFA in order to avoid problems arising from legal misinterpretations.
According to the regulation, refusing to play or train with a club, among other violations, means a contract will automatically be extended 30 months. That, according to the new contract, is not a reward, as it would appear at first glance, but a punitive measure for it means that if a player wants to abandon ship for another club and perhaps a higher fee, he will not be able to do so.
No more than 25 players can now be taken by any one club, some of whom can be under contract but not registered officially with the club. Such players are free to leave their club 15 days after the end of the transfer period, yet to be decided, and still enjoy any remaining benefits stated in their contract.
Moreover, an EFA committee will have the power to settle contractual disputes concerning the transfer fee of any player moving from one club to another. It gives the EFA total authority in such matters.
FIFA, the world's governing body in the sport, will no longer be requested to intervene in local affairs, a move which should delight the soccer powers in FIFA's headquarters in Zurich, forced to consistently reject Egyptian complaints on the grounds that they should be resolved by the country's officials and no one else.
A club reserves the right not to sign junior players unless they have spent four years playing in the first division. However, the player could still play abroad without the consent of his club, a provision that former Arab Contractors player Abdel-Satar Sabri took advantage of when he embarked on his career in Europe and which eventually landed him a plum starting place in Portugal's famed Benfica.
The new rules also deal with foreign players based in Egypt. Each club is to have no more than two foreign players on its roster -- and no non-Egyptian goalkeepers. As a result, several African net minders, chief among them Ismaili's Abdel-Qader Al-Parazi of Morocco, will not be allowed to play in Egypt after their contracts expire. EFA officials regard this as an attempt to protect Egyptian clubs from what they call "the foreign invasion." According to Mohamed Emam, the association's vice president, the open transfer market in Europe has diluted talent in some of soccer's powerhouses, including Germany, Italy and England. "Countries like France, the world champions, have less foreign players in their league," Emam said. "This allows domestic talent to come to the fore and flourish."
Will the same happen here? "These rules are a result of several months of serious study and debate," EFA President El-Dahshouri Harb told Al-Ahram Weekly. Harb said the association lifted a page out of similar European rules. "But we took those rules and tailored them to fit our circumstances."
Despite what looks like a genuine attempt by the EFA to create a climate conducive for better football, some clubs, notably Ahli and Zamalek, were hardly supportive. They complained the association failed to consult them while they were in the process of making the rules, thus presenting them with a fait accompli. "The federation ignored our right to discuss the new system," Kamal Darwish, Zamalek's president, told the Weekly. "We have a group of amateurs controlling our fate."
Darwish accused the association of having ignored ways to develop financial resources, focusing instead on what he called "trivial matters."
Ahli President Saleh Selim slammed the EFA for wanting to run the affairs of Egyptian football. "They are imposing regulations without paying any attention to improving the level of the game which is declining," Selim said.
EFA officials held their ground and put the blame squarely on the indifference the clubs showed. "We invited them several times to discuss the new rules but they did not respond," Harb said. Taking a swipe at Selim, Harb made clear that the EFA, enjoying as it does the support of the general assembly, had every right to handle everything big and small related to football in the country.
However, the EFA boss conceded that a football utopia was still a long way off. "You cannot reach perfection," he said. "We know that there could be some defects in our regulations but we did our best and will leave the rest to the coming board."
The tenure of the current EFA board ends in September. It will leave a legacy to be debated long after that.
