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Top ten highest paid national team coaches in Africa 2015

A lot of money is poured into African football these days and substantial part of it ends in the pockets of the men who set the tone.

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National Football Team Management has surely got to be one of the highest paying jobs in Africa. A lot of money is poured into African football these days and substantial part of it ends in the pockets of the men who set the tone.

When one looks at professional club-level football, money is arguably the best performance enhancing drug for a club.  Many of the club football managers in Africa are being paid huge sums of money, but what about the African national football team managers? As national teams do not play matches on a regular basis like clubs, it is somewhat difficult for the managers to deliver major success in a certain tournament. In the case of Africa, a lot of European managers, mostly novices, trek down to the continent in search of fertile opportunities which serves as a launch pad for their career progression. In recent years, African national team jobs have attracted interests from well-known and experienced European coaches but wait, they do not come cheap. And unlike in Europe, Asia or South America, African governments, in most instances, have to cater for the huge expenses of these football gods.

Ghanaian sports journalist Saddick Adams of GazzettaGhana.com has done some digging, collating the salaries of all the national team managers in Africa and has come up with the top ten highest paid managers on the continent.

Here are the top ten highest-paid African national football team managers in 2015.

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10. Henry Kasperczak (Tunisia National Team)- US$24,000

Henry Kasperczak wasappointed coach of Tunisia for a second stint, replacing Belgian Georges Leekens. Kasperczak, who signed a three-year deal, which pays him  €22,000 and had been on the final three-man shortlist to coach Ivory Coast. The Polish trainer was on a CFA 14.3-million (€22,000) as Mali’s coach as revealed by president of FEAMFOOT, before his exit from the West African state.

9. Jorge Costa (Gabon National Team)- $25,000

The former Portuguese international defender was appointed coach of the Azingo National of Gabon, replacing compatriot Paulo Duarte. It will be the 42-year-old’s first experience of coaching in Africa and he signed a two-year deal worth $25,000 a month. Gabon will host the African Cup of Nations for the first time in 2017, and it will be Costa’s task to prepare a formidable national team for the tournament and also qualify for the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. But Gabon president Ali Bongo Ondimba focuses on using football as a tool for national development and has promised that his state will foot the bills of Costa’s 2 year stay.

8. Sunday Oliseh (Nigeria National Team)- $26,500

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Nigeria appointed Sunday Olisheh as head coach of the National Team, becoming the fourth player from the class of 1994 to manage the Super Eagles after Austin Eguavoen, Samson Siasia and Keshi. According to credible sources within the Nigeria Football federation, the former Borussia Dortmund, Ajax and Juventus player earns 5Million Naira, approximately $25, 094 plus other performance bonuses and add on which rounds the figure to around $26,4100

7. Alain Giresse (Mali National Team Coach)- $27, 863

Alian Giresse signed a two-year deal in Bamako in March 2015 to coach the Eagles, and the Malian federation agreed to pay the former French star a whooping €25,000 a month. The 62-year-old succeeded Pole Henryk Kasperczak, who quit the job soon after a first-round exit from the 2015 CAF Africa Cup of Nations. Girese’s job includes acting as the technical director of Mali’s junior national teams and his recent visits to the popular Jean Marc Guillou Academy in Bamako and his flight to Chile to assist the Mali U-17 Aiglonnets coach Baye Ba is worth the amount.

6. Hector Cuper (Egypt National Team Coach)- $30,000

The Egyptian Football Association announced in March 2015 that it had contracted experienced Argentine Hector Cuper as the new coach of Pharaohs of Egypt. Cuper led Valencia to the Champions League final in 2000 and 2001, and in 2003 he finished second in Serie A with Inter Milan. But Cuper’s experience and expertise will cost the Egypt FA a gross figure of $30,000 a month. Cuper also had spells in charge of Mallorca, Real Betis, Parma, Racing Santander and the Georgia national team. He replaced Egypt’s previous coach, Shawki Gharib.

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5. Ephraim ‘Shakes’ Mashaba (South Africa National Team)- R5.5million ($36,650)

The appointment of Shakes Mashaba was a bit of an anti-climax, with SAFA admitting that hiring the experienced countryman was a “cost-effective and eminently sensible appointment”, but not one to get the football-speaking world talking. Mashaba was, by some margin, the cheapest option on SAFA’s table, as the association aimed at pumping more into development rather than high-risk wages. His R5.5million (36,650) salary will probably amount to around a quarter of the R22m figure that was requested by Carlos Queiroz, the only other name presented to the technical committee for perusal.

4. Ezzaki Badou (Morocco national Team)- Dirham 400,000 ($40,000)

Several big names were linked with the Atlas Lions in March 2014, including former Zambia boss Herve Renard, Italian Giovanni Trapattoni and Dutchman Dick Advocaat. But it the Morocco Football Federation landed on the former international goalkeeper Badou Zaki as the country’s new national coach. Zaki takes home DAM400,00,000, approximately $40,000 a month whiles his assistant Moustapha Hadji earns around $10,000 as salary, ending up to $50,000 a month for the two.

3. Avram Grant (Ghana National Team)- $50, 000

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After a thorough search for high profile coach, the Ghana Football Association settled on former Chelsea manager Avram Grant to lead the Black Stars. After Ghana’s disatrous showing at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, the GFA apparently need a top-notch coach with an impressive ability to unify and command respect, and Grant’s appointment was ideal. Nonetheless, the experienced Israeli trainer came in a handy, but didn’t come cheap. Though the Ghana FA has been tight-lipped  over how much the ex West Ham manager earns for his two-year contract, deep sources with the GFA have revealed that the GFA, through Ghana National Petroleum Corporation dishes out $50,000 gross a month for Grant’s services. He is rumoured to be taking home around $44,500 a month.

2. Michel Dussuyer (Ivory Coast National Team)- $58,000

The Ivory Coast’s 23-year wait for an African Cup trophy ended in January this year, as Frenchman Herve Renard led the Elephants to the trophy in Equatorial Guinea. Renard resigned as coach of The Elephants to become a club coach with French side Lille. The Ivory Coast Football Federation’s search for a new trainer landed on the 56 year old Dussuyer who signed a two-year deal worth about CFA35million ($38,000). Note that Dussyer’s job description goes beyond managing the Elephants, but also handle the country’s Olympic Team, the Local CHAN team and supervises activities of all national teams. His basic task, as outlined by the FIF is to qualify and win CHAN 2016 as well as guide the Ivory Coast to qualify and defend their trophy at the 2017 Nations Cup Gabon.

1.Christian Gourcuff (Algeria National Team)- $70,000

Frenchman Christian Gourcuff was named the new coach of Algeria in July 2014, swiftly replacing Vahid Halilhodzic who took them to the second round of the World Cup in Brazil last month. Gourcuff had long been earmarked to take over after Brazil after formally meeting with the Algerian Football Federation leadership in Paris and agreeing a 3-year deal.

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Not the government, but the Algeria Football Federation (FAF) caters for the salary of the 59-year-old Frenchman, which is officially announced as €65,000 ($70,000) by Federation President Mohammed Raouraoua. Details of his payment indicates that three main sponsors of the FAF, including Mobilis, Group Benamor, Coca Cola and Peugeot takes entire responsibility of 85% of the payment with the FAF addressing the rest.

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