On Sunday, the Malaysian players’ association held a charity golf event that was also participated by Selangor Menteri Besar Dato’ Seri Amirudin Shari
BY ZULHILMI ZAINAL Follow on Twitter
Malaysian clubs should not blame league organiser Malaysia Football League’s (MFL) recent failure to complete paying the 2019 broadcasting rights payment for their arrears to players.
This is the opinion expressed by the Professional Footballers Association of Malaysia chief executive officer (CEO), Izham Ismail.
MFL earlier this month admitted that it will not be able to fulfil the payment it had promised to Super League and Premier League clubs, and several teams such as Sabah and Terengganu FC have either already spoken out against the shortfall, or cited it as a reason for their recent financial hiccups.
But according to Izham, clubs should have adopted a more proactive approach in securing funds, one that does not impede their ability to pay their players when one income stream is facing difficulties.
“Clubs should not simply blame the league and the Malaysian FA for their (clubs’) inability to pay their players that is caused by the grant money issue.
“They need to manage their finances well from the start of the season, and if this had been done they would have been able to estimate their expenditures for the season. They need to ensure that their budget is sufficient, and not blame third parties for their own financial difficulties.
“I urge that a bigger emphasis is placed on ensuring that teams are prepared financially in the coming seasons,” he answered when fielding questions from the press on Sunday.
He was met during the association’s charity golf event at the Impian Golf & Country Club, Kajang, which was held to gather emergency funds for the welfare of its association members. The event was participated by its members, sponsors as well as event patron Dato’ Seri Amirudin Shari, the Menteri Besar (chief minister) of the state of Selangor as well as the former manager of the Selangor Super League team.
PFAM charity golf participants pose for a group photo. Picture by Zulhilmi Zainal
“This is the first time we are organising such an event, with the aim of funding PFAM’s welfare coffer, which was established to help members who are in need. We hope that in the future such an event will draw the support of more parties, so we can help our members who are facing life and health issues. PFAM wants its members to be taken care of.
“Golf is the platform chosen for this event because many footballers in the country have an interest in the sport, while we want to draw the involvement of more sponsors and partners in the future,” explained FIFPro Asia/Oceania board member.
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