By Amin Kef Sesay
Following the decision to inaugurate the club competition, the African football body’s official has shed light on the move. The Chairperson of the CAF Organizing Committee for women’s football, Isha Johansen, has explained the motive behind the decision to create the Women’s Champions League.
The African football body announced plans to start a women’s club competition in 2021, the same day it also confirmed the cancellation of the 2020 Africa Women’s Cup of Nations.
The outrage and continental-wide condemnation that followed the 2018 Awcon scrapping has since been addressed by the Sierra Leone Football Association (SLFA) President, citing varying factors.
The 55-year-old also revealed the inauguration of the Champions League was not as a replacement for the Awcon but to compel associations to invest in women’s football. “We’ve had two women’s symposia in Caf and there was a spate cry for the Women’s Champions League to start,” Johansen said in an interview.
“Everybody wants to see more of women’s football to play and get the girls more exposure and more experienced. And this was a welcoming idea. We did not really have the platform then, but now we do.
“It’s always been on the cards. Now we are ready, even though it is strange times. It is not going to be replacing the women’s Awcon and the domestic women’s leagues.
“With the Women’s Champions League, member associations will be compelled to improve the level of their domestic leagues in order to be eligible to participate. They will have to up their game and increase their participation.”
In November, women’s football stakeholders launched a four-year women’s football strategy blueprint at a workshop in Egypt, which the CAF Executive Committee later gave its seal of approval.
In June, Fifa announced a coronavirus relief plan for world football, offering member associations a universal solidarity grant of $1m, with an additional $500,000 grant specifically for women’s football.
With the latest financial support, the Sierra Leone FA boss is confident women’s football will enjoy improved investment across the continent, especially in various women’s domestic leagues. “CAF is giving our financial support to the MAs during the COVID-19 and Fifa recently just announced 500,000 dollars for women’s football to every member association [MA],” she continued.
“This will go a very long way in helping the women’s domestic leagues. There is a recent survey which confirmed that over 30 MAs have women’s leagues. This is a very good start to build on.
“If 30 MAs are working towards a vibrant and appreciable women’s league or women’s football in their country, the remaining which is less than half will also follow suit.
“CAF and FIFA are ever ready to support member associations in the development of women’s football. It is a great time for us, strange and abnormal times but we should also not forget that women’s football is a normal thing and we will not allow COVID-19 or the abnormal times to erode the normality of things.
“We are going to raise our game, we will change our narrative in the game as women in football, players and administrators. I think, now is the time that we should look ahead and look forward and all come on board participating to push our women’s game forward on the continent.”
