SLAM, which was the joint venture company and the vehicle used by SAFA and Stanton Woodrush to commercialize the Bafana Bafana rights since 26 August 2005, will effect a name change.
Subsequently, Stanton Woodrush will have no interest in the Bafana Bafana name or any trademark rights associated with the name. SAFA will be the sole beneficial owner of the brand and will commercialize these rights for its own benefit.
SAFA is pleased that the South African football team will continue to be known as Bafana Bafana and would like to thank Stanton Woodrush for the spirit of good faith in which it engaged with SAFA throughout the negotiations for the class 25 rights and the many compromises made by both parties to ensure that the name is retained as a national asset for the team and South African supporters.
"We are happy about the acquisition of the name, which allows us to exploit this great brand for the good of the game. The future now looks very bright, as this move has begun to open better opportunities for us to venture into real partnerships with various sponsors," said SAFA president Kirsten Nematandani.
"We recognise that the team and the brand are inextricably linked and that they are indivisible in the sense that they have one identity. The brand without the team and the team without the brand would significantly dilute the goodwill which is entrenched through their association and, were they to be separated, soccer fans throughout the world, particularly our local supporters, would be deprived of a much loved symbol of the unity, which South African soccer has brought to our nation," said Neil Lazarus, spokesperson for Stanton Woodrush and the Smidt family.
SAFA can now look forward to preparing the team and focusing on further commercializing the brand name for its own benefit in the forthcoming 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil.
