One of the hot talking points in the podcast this week is the potential makeup of a maiden African Super League
The African Super League is back on the agenda, with new Confederation of African Football president Patrice Motsepe again discussing the launch of the new initiative earlier this month.
The curtain may have just fallen on last season and the Caf Champions League, but already the attention has turned to the potential Super League.
So many questions abound around the project…
What would be the buy-in? What would be the format? How many teams would be included?
All of these queries and more are addressed in a recent episode of the African Football HQ podcast, as the team discuss the concept of the Super League and dig deep on some of the big issues.
One of the hottest talking points is the makeup of the maiden African Super League, with Caf surely facing a major headache as they look to draw up an original list of competitors.
Regional qualifiers have been mooted, and indeed, it could be the only potentially reasonable way to begin to decide upon a field of competitors.
However, the prospect of a closed shop of 20 teams continues to look like a potential option for African football, and while it would be a money-spinning proposal, it risks leaving many continental heavyweights on the outside.
Of course, the likes of Al-Ahly, SC Zamalek, Wydad Casablanca, Esperance and Etoile du Sahel would be shoo-ins to be included, as would Mamelodi Sundowns.
Soweto Derby duo Orlando Pirates and Kaizer Chiefs would need to take their place among the elite, but could the PSL justify having three teams in the tournament even though they’ve only produced one Caf Champions League winners since 1995?
Certainly, Chiefs reached the Caf CL final this season, but they have only one continental honour—an African Cup Winners’ Cup won in 2001—and after finishing eighth in the South African top flight, how could an argument be made that they deserve inclusion?
Indeed, if the Amakhosi are included as a historical giant in Africa, then which other historical giants will demand their place among the elite?
Should Asante Kotoko or Hearts of Oak take their place in the Super League? Or what of ASEC Mimosas?
Surely, some West African representation must come from Nigerian, but former African champions Enyimba are currently sat down in fourth in the NPFL and there are no guarantees they will return to the continent’s top flight next term.