Former Pirates, CT City star Mpho Makola discusses transition to club ownership
Former Orlando Pirates star Mpho Makola has opened up on his transition into club ownership after parting ways with Polokwane City FC ahead of the 2023/24 DStv Premiership season.
The 38-year-old midfielder left PLK City in June 2023 after helping the club gain automatic promotion to the SA elite league from the Motsepe Foundation Championship.
Makola joined the Limpopo-based side in January 2023, and his experience was crucial in sealing the promotion. After six months with the club, Makola and PLK City could not agree on personal terms for the new contract which resulted in the abrupt departure of the veteran.
‘Bibo’ has been a free agent for the entire 2023/24 season, and he revealed that he’s done playing professional football.
Before joining Rise and Shine, Makola featured for teams such as Free State Stars, Orlando Pirates and Cape Town City FC. He has made over 300 appearances in the SA top-flight, scoring 31 goals and providing 48 assists.
WHICH TEAM IS MPHO MAKOLA OWNING?
The skilful midfielder admits that he doesn’t have a desire to continue playing football. He has opened up about his new venture with Viasport FC in the SA fourth-tier league, the SAFA Men’s Regional League.
“The club is called Viasport FC, playing in the SAB League, so how the club came about is that I was sitting after leaving Polokwane City and thinking that football is not what I want to do anymore,” Makola told FARPost.
“So my business partner was trying to push me and convince me that I can still go on for a couple of seasons at the higher level. So, we decided to form a club that would expose players to the PSL teams.
“We had to start everything from scratch. We went to buy a kit and equipment to start recruiting players. We then had trials, and eventually, six months later, we were able to assemble the team.
“And we started playing friendlies with other teams in the SAB league team, and in our first season, we finished in the second spot behind Panorama FC.
“We were gunning for the championship, but unfortunately, it didn’t work out. Kudos to those boys because in hardly a year, they managed to score over 100 goals without having to bribe anyone, not to say that I’m implying that other people are doing it.
“We are doing so much for these boys, and I’m happy with the progress. I can proudly say if they can play a PSL team now, they can do the job.”
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