Former SAFA president now a businessman

The name Kirsten Nematandani might be associated with football, but the man is no longer part of the football family. To be exact, Nematandani vanished from football circles in September 2013. He was elected to be the president of the South African Football Association (SAFA) way back in 2009.

Nematandani was the first person to be elected unopposed as the president of the association. He held the position until his term of office expired in 2013. Born on 27 May 1958, Nematandani has served in countless football structures, both locally and nationally. His road to fame started when he became the coach of Chibuku Young Stars FC between 1986 and 1988.

He became the president of the Venda Football Association (VEFA) in 1988. The Venda Football Association was later renamed the SAFA Vhembe Regional Association and Nematandani continued to serve as president. As the president of SAFA Vhembe, Nematandani worked on several portfolio committees in the national office.

He was the chairperson for the competitions committee between 2001 and 2005. He served as the chairperson of the refereeing committee from 2006, until his election as the president of the association in 2009. Nematandani was the president of SAFA when South Africa became the first African country to host the FIFA World Cup tournament in 2010.

After vanishing from football circles in 2013, Nematandani refused to be a forgotten legend. The only thing he did was to leave the sporting world and venture into business. In an interview with Limpopo Mirror, the former director of sports at the University of Venda revealed that he spoke the language of business wherever he went.

Asked what business he was pursuing, the 62-year-old former lecturer at the then Tshisimani College of Education said that he was a business consultant apart from the fact that he was managing his own businesses. He further stated that he had helped so many people to emerge from nothing and become prosperous businesspeople. He revealed that he is the project manager for the Mbulaheni Mulaudzi Legacy Project. He said he was always ready to assist people who wished to venture into the business sector, free of charge. Nematandani can be phoned on 082 990 7401.

Sport - Date: 23 May 2020

Frank Mavhungu

Frank is a Human Resources Manager at the Department of Public Works in Limpopo. He is the longest serving correspondent of the Mirror, having joined us at the end of 1990.  He mainly writes sports reports and resides at Tsianda Village. In 2004, Frank won the National Castle League Award, an award for the best reporter in the SAB league in South Africa.

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