Stanley Matthews will quit his position as chief executive of South African football’s top-tier Premier Soccer League to return to pan-regional sub-Saharan Africa pay-television broadcaster Multichoice.
Matthews left Multichoice – which operates Supersport, the region’s leading pay-television sports channels – to join the league just five months ago. Supersport’s news website said that he would rejoin Multichoice as head of continental football operations.
League chairman Irvin Khoza said: “The departure of Stan Matthews was initiated by a call in March 2012 from Mr Imtiaz Patel, the CEO of Multichoice, who confidentially informed me that Multichoice had decided on a u-turn in relation to releasing Mr Matthews to the PSL. He informed me that Stan Matthews would be on the list of those approached for a post that was about to open. As always, I thanked Mr Patel for the heads-up.”
Khoza added: “In April 2012, Mr Matthews approached me with a request to cut his stay at the PSL short as a bigger opportunity had come up for him. After persuading Stan to stay [sic], I finally relented on the condition [that] his departure only happens at the end of the season.”