In a move aimed at improving the quality of football in South Africa, the SA Football Association (SAFA) has announced the implementation of coaching standards in the PSL.
This means that starting from next season, all head coaches in the PSL, DStv Premiership and Motsepe Foundation Championship will need to possess specific coaching licenses in order to be eligible to sit on the bench.
This comes after SAFA held a national executive committee meeting at the weekend after a debate and discussion about the need to raise the standard of coaching in South Africa.
SAFA vice-president Linda Zwane stated that the head coaches in the PSL will need to hold at least a CAF A License, while assistant coaches will need to hold a CAF B License.
Last month, SAFA took a big step towards raising the standard of coaching in the country by hosting the CAF A License Coaching Course at SAFA House in Johannesburg.
The programme attracted top coaches from across PSL, including Steve Barker, Gavin Hunt, Eric Tinkler, and Tlisane Motaung of AmaTuks.
The course was also attended by former professional players such as Jabulani Mendu and Godfrey Sapula.
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“We have agreed that from the 2024/25 season, a coach in the PSL and NFD must have a CAF licence and an assistant coach must have B licence,” said Zwane of SAFA.
“It goes to the ABC Motsepe League [third tier] and Hollywoodbets Super League [women’s league] where you must have a C licence, and filters down to local football associations and universities, which are also regulated.
“When the technical director [Walter Steenbok] raised this matter in our last congress, he received serious criticism but we are clear this is our position. We have given a timeline that this year we are relaxed but next year this is what we want.”