CAF sponsors threatened to quit if Motsepe left, president reveals

Patrice Motsepe has made a surprising revelation about his decision to seek a second term as president of the Confederation of African Football (CAF): the continent’s major football sponsors threatened to pull their funding if he stepped down.

Motsepe, who was elected in 2021 and re-elected unopposed in March 2024, is widely credited with steering Africa’s football governing body out of a prolonged period of financial turmoil, poor governance, and corruption.

Speaking at the South African National Editors’ Forum’s fundraising gala dinner most recently, the mining magnate confirmed that his original plan was to serve only a single term.

The Threat That Forced A Motsepe Second Term

“I thought I would have one term,” Motsepe said. “Last year, my period came to an end, and then I announced I was going to step down, and the sponsors said, ‘If you leave, we’re going to leave with you.’”

The threat from key investors highlights the financial stability Motsepe has brought to the organisation. CAF recently announced a profit for the 2023-24 financial year, along with significant increases in prize money for competitions and new investments in infrastructure and development.

“We had made such enormous progress and were at a critical stage,” he added. “I’m very happy and proud—African football will never be the same again.”

Motsepe pointed to his initial turnaround strategy, which included a commitment to visit all 54 African countries. He confirmed he visited 45 as part of the mission to restore confidence and engagement.

The Challenge of Succession

The Mamelodi Sundowns owner, Motsepe, was then pressed on whether the sponsors’ ultimatum points to a lack of confidence in a robust succession plan at CAF.

While expressing confidence in the current leadership, Motsepe conceded that finding successors who can maintain the trust of investors is crucial.

“When I was president of the Black Business [Council], one thing you always learn is while you are president, there’s a lot of enormous progress and we learn all the time that often it’s more important what happens when you’re not president any more,” he reflected.

He stressed that the mission to rehabilitate CAF has demanded “a lot of hard, hard work,” including confronting those involved in past governance issues.

“You’ve got to call [them] behind closed doors and say, ‘Now let’s understand what’s going to happen.’ You also have to make them understand that this new dispensation is good for them and will benefit them enormously,” Motsepe explained, emphasising the commitment to improved transparency and legality across the organisation.