21 May 2018 – Over the weekend the hard-working team at SAFA Phoenix LFA in Ethekwini, registered the one hundred thousandth player in the MYSAFA system – a significant milestone in the 15-month-old system.
“We have found the MYSAFA system to be simple to use and assists us in many ways,” said Nancy Bridgemohun — General Secretary of SAFA Phoenix. “It eliminates dual registrations of players, helps us fight age cheating among our junior leagues and the link to Home Affairs gives us confidence that players’ id documents are genuine. Once you start using it, there is no going back to the old methods of registering players.”
The SAFA Phoenix team — Front row (L TO R): Sagie KISTEN , Desomond GANESAN , Nancy BRIDGEMOHUN; Standing: Gona GOVENDER , Trevor IYER , Suveen OREEF
It was hardly a surprise that the milestone was achieved by an LFA in KZN. “The Zulu Kingdom” and Eastern Cape provinces combined account for almost 50% of all MYSAFA registrations – a statistic that may well change in the coming year as SAFA Cape Town and SAFA Johannesburg migrate to the system.
SAFA Phoenix President, Desmond Ganesan identified MYSAFA early on as a potential game-changer for his association.
“After reading about MYSAFA on www.safa.net, I contacted SAFA Digital straight away to find out how we could get logins and training for the system,” Mr. Ganesan recalled. “Configuring our clubs and leagues was easy and the support team continues to be very helpful and professional. Overall it has been a great experience.”
For many, MYSAFA may be the most visible product of SAFA’s Vision 2022, leveraging technology to gain an edge on the competition.
“The adoption of this technology gives SA an advantage over less tech-savvy countries – especially in Africa,” explained SAFA Digital head Jason Anderson. “ SAFA recognizes that to achieve its goal of being a consistent international football power changes have to be made at the bottom of the sport as well as the top… and MYSAFA is the agent of that change.”
Total MYSAFA registrations to date, grouped by province
The entire MYSAFA and SAFA Digital team wish to extend a heartfelt thanks to everyone that has supported the project since its inception. Special thanks must also go to the leadership and staff at SAFA Nelson Mandela Bay who played a critical role in piloting the system, starting in February 2017.