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Bafana's new Le Coq Sportif kit to be launched online due to the outbreak of the conoravirus

The new Bafana Bafana jersey launch may have to be launched online due to the coronavirus.
The new Bafana Bafana jersey launch may have to be launched online due to the coronavirus.
Image: TWITTER/BAFANA BAFANA

The grand launch of the new Bafana Bafana jersey by French apparel company Le Coq Sportif (LCS) might have to be done online due to the outbreak of the conoravirus‚ the company’s Sales Director Roger Noades has intimated.

Noades confirmed at the weekend that French apparel company has signed a five-year deal with the South African Football Association (Safa) to kit Bafana and potentially all the national teams‚ including Banyana Banyana.

The introduction of the new jersey was supposed to have been done a few weeks before Bafana donned it for the first time in their Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Ghana in SA on June 1.

But the qualifier remains in doubt because of the outbreak of the coronavirus.

“With the current crisis on hand we are more about planning of shutting down to all LCS operations‚” said Noades‚ whose company has been operating in SA for 12 years and currently has Stellenbosch FC in the Premier Soccer League under its wings.

“The plan is to get the PR agencies and the marketing people to come up with an online launch. I’m moving ahead with the launch and the unveiling of the kit.

“I also need all my retailers in SA and I need a buy-in on supporting the replica programme for them. This virus has taken us by surprise and obviously we just have to work around it.”

Safa acting CEO Gay Mokoena also confirmed that the Le Coq Sportif deal was already in the bag and was penciled to be made known to the public in June. The Ghana match was very much part of the big launch‚ he said.

Noades described as wonderful the atmosphere in which whey sealed their gig with Safa.

“Soccer deals are never easy to negotiate and there were a few other brands bidding for it‚” he said.

“My experiences with Mr (Danny) Jordaan (Safa president) and the rest of the board (council) was superb. Good people‚ love the sport and want the best for it.

“I‚ just as a business‚ I want to know that I can leverage and maximize my sales from aligning with Safa.

“Obviously that’s connected with Bafana’s performance. It will be a very‚ very beneficial relationship if they play well.

“The 2021 Afcon will be a good platform to start with.”

Bafana were supposed to play Sao Tome on Friday and Tuesday in back-to-back 2021 Afcon qualifiers before they were to meet Ghana on June 1.

The Confederation of African Football is yet to clarify when the qualifiers will resume as everyone is currently busy battling to contain to spread of the coronavirus that has brought to a halt many sporting events in the world.

- TimesLIVE