South Africa’s women’s football team has received a hero’s welcome for their impressive World Cup journey, which ended in a loss to the Netherlands in the last 16.
Coach Desiree Ellis has emphasized the need for more support and a professional domestic league for the team to reach their full potential. She called on companies to invest in women’s football, stating that they have a responsibility to do so.
Ellis expressed her disappointment that players still have to work 9-5 jobs and train in the evenings, and urged the corporate world to take notice. She believes that with more support, South Africa could win the World Cup and called on the government to help sponsors come on board.
“To the sponsors. I don’t know how you can ignore something special like this,” Ellis said of her team’s tournament run.
“I don’t know how you cannot assist in getting us to climb the ladder, and not assist in getting us to be better. We still have players who have a 9-5 job, and then have to go train in the evening.
“I think that is unacceptable … I think the corporate world needs to stand up and, and really take notice. Otherwise, we will come back in four years’ time and go through the same thing … we could have gone further”
The success of women’s sport in South Africa, including T20 cricket and hosting the Netball World Cup, has boosted the profile of women’s sport in the country. However, the build-up for the footballers was marred by a strike over money that Ellis said could have been avoided, and was only settled when billionaire and the Confederation of African Football president, Patrice Motsepe made a donation to the team. Despite the setback, Ellis is proud of the team’s achievements and expects the country to continue celebrating their success.
