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While still holding out hope that his annual football tournament will go ahead despite the sporting calendar being severely disrupted by the Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic, erstwhile Bafana Bafana star Maimane Alfred Phiri is reeling from the global health crisis’ impact on his businesses.
The 45-year-old former midfielder’s liquor outlet and a buy-and-braai establishment remain shut as they are not classified as essential services under South Africa’s strict Covid-19 regulations.
“I employ about 20 people who I still try to assist even though we have not had any income from the business since the lockdown,” said Phiri, one of the few local players who has proved that there can be life after professional football.
Phiri has already been forced to postpone his hugely popular MAP Games – named after himself – in Alexandra township to later in the year due to the epidemic and the subsequent nationwide lockdown.
Interestingly, his businesses are situated adjacent to the Rotary Grounds, which serve as the venue for the first stages of the MAP Games.
“We want to support government and be part of the solution [to help curb the spread of the virus]. So we are not cancelling the games, but postponing them with the hope that we’ll be able to play on new dates,” said Phiri, while highlighting the event’s pulling power.
“These games literally bring Alex to a standstill. On a Saturday, the event attracts about 12 000 spectators, but the number increases to about 15 000 on a Sunday. For now, we hope things would have stabilised in September and October,” he said.
READ: ‘We couldn’t ignore reality’: Alex’s famed MAP Games delayed
Phiri said the last thing would be to move the games into the congested festive period, when most of the township’s tournaments are staged. He has moved the event from its traditional May to June window to September and October, with the hope that government and health authorities will have given the green light for life to return to normal by then.
But Phiri is not entirely certain what will happen to the event in its 20th anniversary year.
This is because the densely populated township is regarded as a coronavirus hot spot.
There’s also a sense that the lockdown could be extended beyond the end of this month due to the spike the infection rate.
But should the coronavirus crisis persist for longer, Phiri said the biggest losers would be a local old-age home and a school for the disabled, which are the main beneficiaries of his pet project.
Phiri founded the MAP Games as his social responsibility project, and the event has established itself as a big feature during PSL off-season.
The games started out as a four-team football competition in 2000 and today the event is a multicoded sports extravaganza that attracts close to 300 entries from Gauteng and other provinces.
The teams range from juniors to women’s and men’s senior sides, with more than R100 000 at stake for the men’s champions.
There is also a netball competition and a fun run that are part of the annual event.
Some prominent PSL players such as Kaizer Chiefs duo Lebogang Manyama and Joseph Molangoane, as well as Mpho Makola of Cape Town City, made their mark at the MAP Games, while most NFD clubs also use the tournament to scout for new talent.
Phiri was a Bafana squad member at the 1998 World Cup.
He retired from competitive football in 2009 after a career spanning 13 seasons, eight of them spent in Turkey.
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