A trip around Mali’s capital Bamako recently enlightened us when the locals of the West African country told us that several buildings in the Central Business District were owned by Barcelona star Seydou Keita including residential apartments.
Just adjacent to where the Warriors were staying in their run up to the 2012 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier match against Mali, was an amazing four-storey building belonging to Keita that is being leased by a bank called Malienne de Solidarite S.A.
It is an incredible investment by Keita which we feel our own footballers must emulate especially those that are getting rich pickings from South Africa and Europe.
Many a time players have died paupers; either, they had wrong management or poor advice during their peak.
Players must hire professional managers to run their businesses while they concentrate on their job.
A handful of players come into mind who successfully managed their finances. Among them are former Warriors captains Norman Mapeza who has a house in the prestigious Glen Lorne suburb, Blackburn striker Benjani Mwaruwari who has invested heavily in property and Harlington Shereni.
Peter Ndlovu at one point invested in a company called MAP which he co-owned with his siblings Madinda and Adam, but not much has been written about it of late and the former Warriors skipper is as enigmatic as ever with regards to his personal life.
Ndlovu is believed to own several houses in the United Kingdom where he played for 13 years.
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At the time of his death, former Warriors defender Francis Shonhayi, was reportedly living a pauper’s life in Cape Town, South Africa despite having played for several years in that country where players are remunerated better than those who play in Zimbabwe.
May his soul rest in peace.
But it was not just Shonhayi. Former exciting winger Rabson Mchichwa is reportedly doing menial jobs to survive even though he played for glamour club Kaizer Chiefs who obviously richly rewarded him.
These examples must be a lesson for footballers. Soccer players must invest while they are still on fat payrolls.
For this to happen they should employ vibrant business managers for their finances while at the same time avoid the “ghetto” mentality.
There is a tendency by footballers who come from certain neighbourhoods to show off with their money while forgetting to invest.
They are normally spotted at bottle stores with hangers on around them imbibing to the last coin what they would have earned.
We encourage footballers and other sports heroes alike to use their money wisely.
Keita’s example inspired us and we hope some of our players will imitate him or even surpass what he is doing in his home country.
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