The first step in creating a professional league is to create a
committed fan base. Professional leagues can only thrive where there is a
committed group of fans who attend matches regularly, follow the progress of
their teams in the media and possibly pay membership fees.
The problem with the Kenyan sports scene, specifically sports such as basketball
volleyball, hockey and football is that the league is dominated by
Institutional teams, most of which cannot command a significant following.
Ideally the league should be dominated by teams representing specific regions. A
tournament pitting each of Nairobi's constituencies against each other would be
a huge draw. When the pride of the
neighborhood is at stake, fans are more
likely to identify themselves with their teams more strongly. One of the reasons
the English are very passionate about their teams is the fact that each team
represents a specific area. Thus North Londoners support Arsenal those from
Central London support Chelsea and those from East London support West Ham. This
is the idea behind the Super 8 Inter constituency football tournament sponsored by SafariCom. That company is gaining plenty of mileage by tapping into the
penchant of Nairobians for supporting their
neighbourhood teams fervently. The tournament has attracted huhe crowds and plenty of public interest.
And when Dandora youth won the tourney, the entire estate took to the streets to celebrate in song and dance creating scenes reminiscent of the 1980s Kenya football scene.
A basketball tournament pitting a team called Langata Basketball club (representing Langata constituency) against another one called the Eastlanders representing Eastlands would probably draw larger crowds and engender more passions than one pitting Cooperative Bank against Kenya Railways. Clubs that have a committed fan base are the basis for creating a professional league.
Basketball matches in Kenya often draw
sizable crowds. A basketball league that pits one region of the city against
another or one province against another would engender true passion and draw
larger crowds
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While traveling around Nairobi, one notices that impromptu
volleyball matches in neighbourhoods such as Kaloleni generally draw big
crowds, whereas street basketball matches often draw large numbers of
young people. The simplicity of the game is very appealing to the
public. A match pitting teams representing each constituency or each
region of the city would draw even bigger crowds if well publicized.
Selling such a tournament to sponsors would be easy as is evidenced by
the fact that SafariCom took it upon themselves to create a tournament.
A league that has teams representing each province as well as 3 or 4
teams representing each of Nairobi's regions would be popular among fans
and would be easier to sell to sponsors. |
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Matches involving the national volleyball team often draw huge crowds which means public interest in the game exists. Now its just a question of finding ways to attract crowds to league matches.
An annual inter-provincial tournament pitting representative
teams from each province would also prove to be a major crowd puller. The fact
that national
team matches are always well attended is an good indicator that fans are
very interested in volleyball and basketball. An inter-provincial tournament
would encourage provincial branch officials to work harder at developing the
sport in their provinces. Ideally each provincial branch should have a
partnership with a local boarding school. Talented sportsmen and women should be
given scholarships to attend these schools, not only for the opportunity to
play, but also for the opportunity to earn a
bachelors degree. These talented sportsmen should then be well equipped and
assigned competent qualified
coaches. Again getting sponsorship for such an endeavor is possible. Many
companies would like to sponsor such endeavors under the marketing slogan
"Investing in the youth of
Kenya". For too long, Kenya volleyball has been too dependent on two or
three schools to develop talent."
The media should also play a role in promoting sports. In the USA, many people
including Kenyans who have never played basketball have become fanatical fans of
the college basketball scene. This is in large part due to media hyping of the
tournament by using such slogans as "March madness". In Kenya the media has yet
to embrace the fact that hyping up sports events will mean more money in their
coffers. Even a simple act such as profiling each player, presenting a picture
and talking about his school days has the impact of making the public identify
with players and makes them more likely to want to attend a match.
A professional league in basketball, volleyball or hockey is not likely to happen in Kenya anytime soon. But what the current officials owe Kenyans is to come up with a long term plan that will result in the creation of a viable professional league years in the future. This would entail the creation of viable club sides with committed fan bases, and embarking on an aggressive sustained marketing campaign to sell this teams to the public and to sponsors.
One important issue that ought to be discussed is the issue of ownership of professional teams. Ideally community teams should not be owned by individuals. They should be run as NON profit organizations. The beauty of a non profit is that all the profits generated are plowed back into the organization, so the team can invest in better facilities and even participate in community projects and charities. Also people are more likely to be interested in supporting the team financially if the team is owned by the community and not by individuals. Also the accounts of Non profit organizations are subject to intense auditing which will further enhance public trust.
The bottom-line is that bringing crowds to the games, creating excitement among the public and eventually creating a viable professional league will require a well thought out long term plan backed by an aggressive sustained campaign of marketing, accountability, proper staffing and responsibility. Are Kenyan sports officials up to this task ? It remains to be seen but don't hold your breath ?
