Federation officials say they have plans to make clubs independent by requiring them to operate under their board, manage their finances, and obtain business licenses. Abraham disclosed that, in some instances, bank accounts are controlled by team managers or even players, a practice that invites mismanagement. The League’s financial problems, he says, derive from skewed budgets, weak gate revenues, inadequate sponsorships, and little effort to sell club merchandise. Frequent player transfers have inflated wage bills, and the game itself has deteriorated in quality, further weakening fan support.

Kifle Seife, the general manager of the Ethiopian Premier League S.C. conceded that most clubs are in a precarious position. According to him, they lack the planning, branding, and commercial strategies to generate sufficient revenue from ticket sales or merchandising.

“Ethiopian football clubs are generally weak,” he told Fortune, criticising teams for overspending on players. "There could be illegal payment systems at play.'

A directive issued last year seeks to curb these practices, but enforcement has been limited. There were suspicions that some clubs pay players more than what is agreed in their contracts, and investigations on five clubs and 25 players are underway.

A study by the League revealed that clubs collectively spend over 150 million Br on salaries annually, even though the official salary cap is 57.5 million Br. While non-compliance is punishable, few clubs face real consequences. Kifle urged teams to invest in proper training venues and to focus on technical and psychological support for players, areas he believes remain underdeveloped. He estimated that 98pc of clubs are still under the wing of various government agencies, particularly city administrations, making them fiscally dependent.

Officials acknowledge the strain. In the Amhara Regional State, Fasil Kenema and Bahir Dar Kenema receive public funding from their respective city administrations, despite calls for clubs to become more self-reliant.

“Sports funding is straining public resources,” said Mulugeta Leul, director of the Youth & Sports Bureau, the Amhara Regional State.

Efforts to transition clubs away from subsidies have made limited progress, as few teams have shown they can stand on their own.

Only a few clubs, such as Ethiopia Bunna and St. George, operated with limited government support.

According to Ethiopia Bunna’s General Manager, Gezahegn Wolde, it has done so by securing sponsorships from coffee exporters and suppliers, as well as corporates such as Habesha Brewery and Bunna Bank. Merchandise sales and an annual road race also helped.

Policymakers are revising a long-standing sports policy, shifting focus from competition-centred goals to youth development and new infrastructure. Officials from the Ministry of Culture & Sport say a recent study informed the plan to build multi-sport facility centres nationwide and to pursue more comprehensive structural reforms.

A key proposal is to establish a sports fund, pooling resources from both private and public agencies. A dedicated committee would manage the fund’s daily operations, overseeing project approvals and strategies while retaining the authority to terminate underperforming initiatives. Under the revised policy, clubs would be required to demonstrate financial independence.

According to Tesfaye Bekele, the Ministry’s sports development head, clubs have a history of poor financial management and struggle to attract sponsors, citing past instances of contract manipulation.

“Financial misconduct has been a major problem,” Tesfaye told Fortune. “Clubs are in disarray and need urgent reform.”

The updated policy sets minimum budget requirements for clubs and introduces new limits on the number of foreign players. Each team would be allowed a maximum of three foreign nationals and no foreign goalkeepers. According to Tesfaye, directives are also being crafted to enforce "proper club administration" and financial accountability.

“These administrative measures will be enforced,” he said.

Experts contend that if clubs and their leaders hope to turn around their financial problems, they should rein in expenses and invest in player development. Zeru Bekele (PhD), a sports science lecturer at Addis Abeba University, saw how teams under the Premier League suffered heavy losses during the pandemic because of reduced stadium attendance and match-day revenues. He called their ongoing transfer battles “reckless spending,” noting that clubs devote less than two percent of their annual budgets, often in the hundreds of millions, to youth programs.

“Clubs are financially self-destructing,” Zeru said.

He argued that several teams provide fewer than two hours of training before matches, limiting technical skills and players’ marketability abroad. Selling players internationally, he believes, could serve as a long-term revenue source if clubs invested more time and money in development. Yet, despite the mounting evidence that something should change, clubs appear reluctant to cut costs or improve infrastructure.

Zeru insisted that Ethiopian football will remain stagnant and financially precarious without stronger regulatory oversight, mandatory self-governance, and better marketing strategies.

“Clubs need structured financial strategies and disciplined spending,” he said. “Without those, they won’t survive in the long run.”

PUBLISHED ON Feb 23, 2025 [ VOL 25 , NO 1295]

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