One Good Turn Returns Patrice Motsepe as CAF President

The adage “one good turn deserves another” seems to have been what played out in the unopposed re-election of Dr Patrice Motsepe as President of the Confédération Africaine de Football (CAF). The man’s mandate was renewed on Wednesday at the 14th CAF Extraordinary General Assembly in Cairo, Egypt which automatically renews his $300,000-a-year position as a vice president at FIFA.

During his initial inauguration in March 2021, this first English-speaking President of CAF expressed readiness to make African Football self-sustaining and drive growth in a number of different spheres. The lack of challengers for his presidency could mean that Motsepe has lived up to this pledge even though he believes “there is still a lot of work to be done.”

Speaking shortly before the election, the 63-year-old businessman and philanthropist highlighted the issue of national stadiums across Africa as one of his key areas of focus. According to him, “In 2021, there were 36 countries that were not playing football in their countries. The number has come down to 12 but for us, this is still a big number. At CAF and FIFA, it is our job to continue supporting the development of sports infrastructure."

The CAF President’s second-term election ended up being a mere formality as it had been decided before the events in Cairo. The last four years have seen CAF move its development agenda forward at pace with many historic firsts. It is therefore not surprising that the incumbent became the first and only contender for the office in 2025.

Who is Patrice Motsepe?

Credit: AFP

Patrice Motsepe was born on January 28, 1962 in a township of Soweto, South Africa. After studying law, he worked briefly in the United States before returning home to put his skills to work for the African National Congress (ANC), which was preparing to take power in South Africa at that time.

In 1994, Motsepe became a specialist in mining and commercial law when apartheid officially ended in his country. He first worked in a law firm, and then later became an entrepreneur. He later started his own company called Future Mining which collected gold dust from interior wells. In 1997, he bought low-producing gold mine shafts and later turned them profitable. 

He became a mining magnate and a member of several executive committees, including Harmony Gold and the South African insurance group Sanlam. The founder and chairman of African Rainbow Minerals became a billionaire in 2008, the first black African to be featured on the Forbes list. In 2013, he joined The Giving Pledge and donated half his fortune to this charity to promote health and education. In 2016, he launched a new private equity firm, African Rainbow Capital, focused on investing in Africa. 

Despite his large fortune in the gold mines industry, Patrice Motsepe entered the football business in the 2000’s. In 2004, he bought the football club Mamelodi Sundowns based in Pretoria which is one of the top 10 best on the continent. The club won the CAF Champions League in 2016 and the African Super Cup in 2017 amid several other awards.  He has strong political connections as a brother-in-law of South African President Cyril Ramaphosa.

Stabilizing CAF’s Finances and Boosting the Confederation’s Global Profile

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Motsepe took over the reins at a time of crisis with his predecessor, Madagascar’s Ahmad Ahmad being the first CAF president to be banned by FIFA for corruption. He met several financial deficits, including the termination of CAF’s $1 billion TV rights deal with Lagardère. From this low position, the Motsepe-led federation cleared the debts, increased prize money for CAF competitions, and enhanced financial support for member associations.

CAF has also managed to increase its annual subversions to Member Associations from $200,000 to $400,000 per annum, and from $500,000 to $750,000 to its six Zonal Unions. Motsepe says his “aim is to give every African nation $1-million (subversion) annually, starting in 2026.” The money is expected to be used for football development.

Prize money across all CAF competitions has increased, not least for women’s football, with CAF investing almost five times as much in the women’s game as at the start of his tenure. Having launched the CAF Women’s Champions League soon after taking office in 2021, Motsepe says the ladies’ game will continue to be a special focus as “half of our (African) population are women” and “Women’s football is about inspiring young girls.”

All these strides were recorded amid significant growth in the bottom line of CAF, reporting a $72 million (£55.5m) profit from last year’s Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Ivory Coast, 18 times larger than that generated by the previous edition in 2022. The tournament drew a record global audience of 2 billion viewers and is one of the highlights of Motsepe’s first term in office. 

However, the golden tenure has been dogged by scheduling glitches in major championships. The 2024 African Nations Championships – which should have been held last summer in Kenya, Uganda and Tanzania – was rescheduled in January 2025 for August 2025.

Similarly, the 35th Africa Cup of Nations, tabled for July and August 2025 in Morocco, was moved to December 2025 and January 2026, in order to avoid a clash with the newly expanded FIFA Club World Cup in the United States in June and July.

Just before the end of the 34th Africa Cup of Nations in Cote d'Ivoire in February 2024, Motsepe hinted that the Morocco event might not be in July 2025. "There’s a lot of competing events at the same time," he explained a day after meeting Gianni Infantino, the head of world football's governing body FIFA. The CAF President would be expected to use his second term to get it together and appease African administrators over the organisation of the confederation's most prestigious competitions.

Conclusion

Motsepe’s unopposed re-election suggests that CAF member associations believe he is the right person to continue leading African football’s revival and strengthening its position on the global stage. With his renewed tenure, the man is expected to further modernize African football, focusing on improving the sport’s governance, increasing investments, and elevating the quality of competitions across the continent.

Prior to Dr Motsepe throwing his hat in the CAF presidency ring, his compatriot Danny Jordaan, president of the South African Football Association declared: “We are convinced that his business acumen, his strict respect for governance, legal training, his global commercial network, his commitment and his love for African and world football makes him a revolutionary choice for the leadership of African football”. As this seems clairvoyant, Sportblot hopes the CAF President uses his second term to consolidate on his achievements.