Oupa Manyisa was part of a two-man team that created a brilliant, innovative footballing business with the potential to change the landscape of the game in South Africa.
While still a professional footballer at the vibrant age of 35, the midfield star has taken the appropriate steps to ensure that his career in the game does not end when he eventually makes the heart-breaking decision of hanging up his boots.
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When Manyisa reflects on what he has achieved in his career, it's probably safe to say that he looks back at it with pride, joy and contentment given what he has achieved in the game.
He represented various clubs around the country in a prestigious list that includes Orlando Pirates, Mamelodi Sundowns, Tshakhuma Tsha Madzivhandila FC, Chippa United and Platinum City.
During his illustrious career, he has — until now — made 278 professional appearances and scoring 26 goals and creating 19 in the process. His trophy cabinet is one that is not too shabby either. The midfield general has won the DSTV Premiership five times, the MTN8 on two occasions, and a Telkom Knockout in 2011.
Now, however, he seems to be looking to give back by helping the next generation of footballers make their dreams come true, making a business out of it as well.
Manyisa, along with his partner Brighton Mhlongo, created an app called Myfootball CV which seems to be a method that can really facilitate the coming of the next top-talent the country has to offer.
"We know how difficult it is to get noticed. Our platform gives you the opportunity to have your game footage assessed by thousands of scouts and coaches," the company said on its official website.
The app essentially offers the user/ aspiring footballer to upload his or her very own match footage in order to maximise the exposure a player can receive by being spotted by those scouts that are also users of the app. In essence, the pair have created an intermediary that helps both teams and players by creating an easier method for clubs to identify talent.
The app also runs online trials and the players who pass those trials and get selected for in-person trials, the organisation covers all the required expenses for the player to attend.
"Our aim is to level the playing field and provide you with the greatest possible exposure to maximise your chances of playing in top-division football," it added.
Aspiring players have the option of choosing between two memberships: a free plan and a premium subscription. The free plan includes the user being allowed to upload match footage up to 40 seconds, upload goal passing up to 40 seconds, upload short clips of up to 40 seconds. However, the free plan won't give users access to all international trails and tournaments.
The Premium plan, however, comes with more benefits. Players on this plan will get the opportunity to upload match footage up to 5 minutes, upload goals passing up to 3 minutes, upload short clips of up to 2 minutes 30 seconds, as well as the opportunity to access all international trails and tournaments. It comes at a price 17.99 per month.
Manyisa is proving himself quite competent in his endeavour to create multiple streams of income. Apart form being one half of the team that launched the Manyisa Mhlongo Foundation, he has also worked with Samsung on one notable occasion where he acted as somewhat of a brand ambassador to promote one of the company's competitions called the "Samsung Dribble Challenge" a while back. People who participated in the competition were in line to win their share of a whopping R250 000 in prizes. At the time, Manyisa was at the centre of the campaign. Having one of the world's largest technological on his list of partnerships is not at all a bad look.
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