A ROLE IN THE RENAISSANCE OF WATER FOOTBALL CLUB: A SIT DOWN WITH THE CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER OF WATER FOOTBALL CLUB LIMITED

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A new era at Water Football Club is underway, the club is currently in the pursuit of promotion to the FUFA Big League and is being run by a new Chief Executive Officer, Mr Raymond Musinguzi. The worst thing as a football fan, is not knowing what is going on and not feeling part of something that is fundamentally yours.

Water Football Club is a professional football club owned by National Water and Sewerage Corporation based in Kampala, Uganda, that competes in the Kampala Regional League, the third division league in Ugandan Football.

Pleasure to meet you. First and foremost, who is Raymond Musinguzi?
Thank you, Raymond Musinguzi is a Ugandan citizen employed by National Water and

Sewerage Corporation as a Digital Media officer in the Public Relations and Communications

department and now the newly appointed Chief Executive Officer of Water Football Club Limited.

In a nutshell what is the role of the CEO and please narrate your journey at Water FC thus far
The role of the CEO is to ensure that the strategic objective of the board is achieved. It’s my role to ensure that the direction of the football club is operationalized and broken down into practicability. I must say It’s been a roller Costa of a journey and I did not start off as the CEO. I joined the club as a volunteer in 2020 working closely with the management team of the club.

What prompted Water FC Limited to have a change in management?
When my predecessor decided to step down, an opportunity provided itself and then the chairman of the club saw it fit that I would take the club to the next level and then I was appointed in November 2021. So here we are today

What has been the priority area of concern for your first tenure in office?
When I first interacted with the club chairman, he shared the club’s vision with me which is to become the most admired and loved sports institution in Africa. So having this in mind, my team and I had to work around the clock to work on a five-year strategic plan with our five strategic pillars focusing on Corporate governance, Facilities, Marketing, Football Excellence and Financial Stability. The team has also worked on a managerial manual and club code of conduct and all these documents are still at the draft phase pending board approval. We believe that will be the blueprint that will enable us to achieve our desired goals and vision at large.

Has this been reflected in the performance of Water FC?
Definitely, my team and I had to hit the ground running to ensure that we bring the best out of the technical team and the players. Season’s targets were set with the ultimate goal being promotion to the big league. The team struggled in the beginning however, it has been able to pick up the momentum during the course of the first round of the season. The boys have so far played 8 out of 9 games in the first leg or round. We have lost one, drawn two and registered five straight wins putting us in the second position on the table with seventeen points, one behind the leaders with a game in hand. I am very optimistic that we shall top our group since we have six home games and three away in the second round. The current league top scorer is our very own Waswa Moses Batte.

What makes Water FC in tune with the FUFA Club Pro Agenda?
We have had some of our officials attending the Club Pro Agenda training which should enable Water FC to be assessed and licensed beyond sporting merit to compete in the various football competitions under FUFA.

Water FC’s fan base has failed to grow over the years? What do you have in mind to remedy this?
That is true however, I believe with the strategic direction we are going to put in place, this issue will soon be water under the bridge. One of the five strategic pillars in our plan is marketing, my team and I are going to ensure that we effectively communicate with all our stakeholders both internally and externally. We intend to have at least three active and interactive communication platforms with at least a reach of 100,000 followers on each platform. We also plan on having a database of all club funs, we shall ensure that our staff at NWSC are the first line of our support base by interesting them in the clubs’ activities both on and off the football pitch.

What are some of the grey areas and challenges faced thus far?
I must say I have not yet encountered any serious challenges so far. What I had earlier seen as a challenge was the clubs’ lack of a strategic plan or direction and clear club structure however those are currently being taken care of by the club management under the guidance of the chairman. Maybe what I may highlight as a challenge at times is balancing my roles as a Digital Media officer and those of the club as the CEO. God willing, if my colleagues and I are able to guide the team back to the top tier leagues, our recommendation to the board would be to bring in someone to handle the club’s activities on a full-time basis because a lot goes into managing a professional football organization.

There have been qualms in the past about delays in players’ pay? Has this been solved?
Those are baseless rumours. Water FC players are well facilitated otherwise I don’t think the boys would be registering such good results on the pitch. You cannot milk a cow that is not well fed.

Water FC only hires in house, that is only NWSC employees, don’t you think this limits the pool of talent that is available to work with?
1. To some extent yes, for us to achieve the ultimate goal of restoring Water FC’s glory as a top tier team competing at the highest level, some roles need full-time attention for example if we are to attract talent to compete effectively, you need a director of football to manage all issues technical for example to qualify and consolidate status in the UPL (Uganda Premier League), have qualified coaches at all levels of the club, have a fully-fledged soccer academy amongst others and all this can be achieved in the short, medium and long term.
1. Water FC only hires in house, that is only NWSC employees, don’t you think this limits the pool of talent that is available to work with?
2. To some extent yes, for us to achieve the ultimate goal of restoring Water FC’s glory as a top tier team competing at the highest level, some roles need full-time attention for example if we are to attract talent to compete effectively, you need a director of football to manage all issues technical for example to qualify and consolidate status in the UPL (Uganda Premier League), have qualified coaches at all levels of the club, have a fully-fledged soccer academy amongst others and all this can be achieved in the short, medium and long term
1. What is cooking for Water FC in terms of sponsorships?
2. I would like to first express my sincere gratitude to the management of NWSC for continuously supporting this football club because, without management’s support, I don’t think this club would be in existence. Now to answer your question on sponsorship, the club has to first focus on key initiatives within the five strategic pillars of the strategic plan, for example, have a clear and approved organogram or structure with the right people with clearly defined roles, qualify and consolidate status in the top tier leagues while playing an entertaining brand of football, have at least one Corporate Social Responsibility activity every quarter to mention but a few. Once some of these key initiatives are met, sponsors can easily come on board simply because of the Uganda Premier League Championship with the most attractive style of football.
I also see Water FC as more than just a football club. NWSC has a number of programs such as the School Water and Sanitation clubs, Young Water Professionals, Women in Water amongst others. The club can have partnerships with these programs in order to further build the corporation’s corporate image through a series of CSR activities like tree planting campaigns, cleaning campaigns and many more. The club can partner with schools under the SWAS program by holding football clinics in a bid to nurture the next generation of Water FC players hence building an academy of its own in the long run. Water FC players can be sensitized and educated about the core business of the corporation during the off-season. This in return will enable the corporation to have brand ambassadors who will sensitize the community on the dangers of illegal water usage, report leaks and bursts hence contributing to the fight against Non-Revenue Water. Water Football Club will also be the biggest PR tool for NWSC.
1. Which other Clubs do you model /benchmark with?
2. Since I took on this role, I have been in touch with a couple of CEOs from the biggest clubs in the Ugandan league such as Express FC, Vipers FC, KCCA FC, Bright Stars to mention but a few. I have been able to learn a lot from each of these organizations in a very short period of time and I must say there is a lot of goodwill from these footballing entities to help Water FC restore its lost glory. It must be noted that Water FC is still amongst the few surviving institutional clubs in Ugandan football. I have also been privileged and lucky to have met some prominent individuals around the game locally such as Mr Milutin Sredojevic, Uganda Cranes head coach who has shared some tips on how to rejuvenate one of Uganda’s historical football clubs.

An interview by: Allan Mwesiga