Former Orlando Pirates captain Benson Mhlongo supports football administrators Jessica Motaung and Nkosana Khoza as potential future leaders of the Premier Soccer League (PSL).
Mhlongo is confident that local football will remain healthy with the Khoza and Motaung families at the forefront.
Last week, Dr. Irvin Khoza, retained his position as the PSL chairman through elections. Nkosana is the son of Khoza, and Jessica is the daughter of Dr. Kaizer Motaung.
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"I want to congratulate the chairman, and I was happy to hear that they are planning to find a successor," Mhlongo tells KickOff.
"There are already candidates that they are grooming: Jessica and Nkosana. I know there will be political questions about why it has to be those two.
"David Thidiela stated that he is tired and decided to withdraw from the elections."
But Mhlongo raised a valid point: "Who is currently in our football administration? The Motaungs and the Khozas. If I look at the history of South African football, there are about five teams that have sponsorship deals: Orlando Pirates, Kaizer Chiefs, SuperSport United, Cape Town City, and recently, Richards Bay.
"I don't remember Kaizer Chiefs and Orlando Pirates going a full season without a sponsorship," he added.
"To run the PSL, we need someone who knows how to attract big corporates, like the current chairman does. Even in difficult times, he has managed to secure sponsorships."
Mhlongo emphasized, "Without the monthly PSL grant, our football will not survive. The PSL is the only black-owned company that is running successfully, and we should acknowledge that. We need someone in that office who understands the dynamics of the industry. Only those within the organization can truly grasp these dynamics.
"This is not a government institution; it's a company that relies on Dr. Khoza and Dr. Motaung. If they believe their children should take over, then so be it. I fully support that. We cannot afford to gamble with this institution, as long as our game does not come under siege."
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He also pointed out, "Some people are selling their teams because they thought running a football club was easy. They are struggling to pay players, and there are long queues of contract issues. None of my fellow ex-players can run this institution; we don't even have teams because we can't manage them, let alone the league.
"We don't need that. The children of Khoza and Motaung understand better because they are involved. Nkosana is currently running Pirates as we speak."