What's going on in Burkina Faso's women's championship? Should we expect a stoppage, as is already the case with the men's championships? The country's two major regional leagues, the Ligue régionale des Hauts Bassins and the Ligue régionale du Centre, refuse to collaborate with the Fédération Burkinabè de soccer (FBF) in the organization of any activities. Faced with this situation, some Ligue 1 and Ligue 2 women's clubs have made no secret of their frustration. On Friday March 15, they called for dialogue and appeasement between the parties.
Genesis of a degrading situation
At the press conference to introduce the new coach of the Etalons of Burkina Faso, Brama Traoré, on March 11, FBF President Lazare Banssé made it clear that the 25% of the grant allocated to clubs would not be paid out to them. They will be used to organize the junior championship. As a logical consequence, there is no longer any reason for the clubs to claim this much-discussed sum."The clubs claimed the 25% because we didn't organize the junior championship. From the moment we decided to organize the championship (of Burkina) this question is null and void. We can organize, we will organize. This debate will no longer take place. The new protocol settles the original sin of the 25% levy. It's the state that dictates, it's its money. Now if you want benefits, you make pleas," he declared.
During the same press conference, Lazare Banssé hinted that a committee would be set up to try and bring the various conflicting parties together. A few days after Lazare Banssé's statement, the Hauts Bassins and Centre regional leagues, which own the vast majority of League 1 and League 2 clubs, decided to suspend their participation in the activities of the Burkina Faso Football Federation (FBF) until further notice. The two major regional leagues of Burkina Faso have sent two different letters to Lazare Banssé, with the same comments and reasons, dated March 13, 2024 for the Hauts Bassins Regional League and March 14, 2024 for the Centre Regional League. The two leagues cite the crisis in Burkina Faso soccer as the reason for the suspension.
According to the two leagues, it is the decision of Burkina Faso's Ligue 1 and Ligue 2 clubs to suspend their participation in Federation activities until further notice, and the refusal of the teams involved to take part in the 2022-2023 small-sided championship, that underlie their radical decision, given that the regional leagues are the emanation of the clubs in question. For the time being, sporting activities including the men's Ligue 1 and Ligue 2 championships are still at a standstill in the country, and the end of the tunnel is still a long way off.
The frustration of the players
Mindful of the values that underpin Burkina Faso society and the game of soccer, and especially convinced of the need to promote women's soccer and preserve the gains made by Burkinabe women's soccer after its historic first appearance at an African Cup of Nations finals in 2022, the clubs committed to defending the interests of their players decided on March 15 to break their silence and vent their frustration. In light of the decisions of the Hauts Bassins and Centre regional leagues to suspend their participation in the activities of the Fédération burkinabè de soccer (FBF) until further notice, Burkina Faso's League 1 and League 2 women's soccer clubs are calling for calm and the smooth running of activities. "In view of the seriousness and repercussions that this suspension could have on clubs, particularly women's clubs, we, the women's clubs, would like to see appeasement and the resumption of dialogue between the parties concerned, so that activities can resume in complete serenity. We, the Ligue 1 and Ligue 2 women's clubs, invite the Ligue de Football Féminin (LFF) and the Fédération burkinabè de soccer (FBF) to take urgent measures to ensure the smooth running of our leagues," they said.
On the divisive issue of the 25% grant allocated to clubs, Sekou Pare believes that: "People don't know that you can't be complacent when it comes to finance. If this money isn't used to organize the small-category championship (in Burkina), it will be purely paid back. If it is used for any other purpose, it will be misappropriated".
Rahimo FC general secretary Lassina Sawadogo elaborates on the situation. "The clubs have never refused to play in the junior championship. The clubs are saying that they won't play the 2022-2023 season's small-category championship in 2024, whereas the 2023-2024 championship is due to be played in 2024. They have technically demonstrated that the 2022-2023 championship cannot be played in 2024 because licenses are valid for one season, unless the federation (of Burkina) cheats on the licenses by lowering the age of participants by one year. The clubs have said to return their money, as they are the ones who gave it back to the FBF to organize the said championship. If we can't organize it, let's return it to them", he reveals.
Rahimo FC's General Secretary went further, explaining that at the meeting between Burkina Faso's soccer stakeholders (League 1 and 2 clubs and the Burkina Faso Football Federation) and FIFA, represented by its Regional Director of the Member Associations Division for Africa, Gelson Fernandes: "FIFA agreed with the clubs that unless the licenses were manipulated, this championship could not be played, and said it would not authorize such manipulation". The crisis shaking Burkina Faso soccer is far from over, as the status quo remains at the end of this meeting between the Regional Director of FIFA's Member Associations Division for Africa, Gelson Fernandes, and those involved in Burkina Faso soccer. No lines were crossed, and positions remain unchanged.
