Obstacles to professionalism in football from the perspective of players in the capital city of the Republic of Yemen

Abstract

In recent years, the world has entered a new era marked by numerous changes and administrative challenges brought about by the modern technological revolution. Excellence in performance has become the decisive factor driving development and progress in all aspects of life. The knowledge age we live in is also characterized by new features that distinguish it from all that came before. The progress of nations in sports reflects the extent of advancement in the use of modern sports management across all their sporting activities; the higher the level of management, the better the sporting performance (32:8). Kamal Darwish emphasizes that professional sports have transformed the practice of sports, in all its forms, whether individual or collective, into a profession with its own professional requirements, such as continuity, commitment, and contracts. In developed and advanced countries that seek to advance sports and raise standards, they implement management systems specific to both amateur and general sports, as well as professional sports management through the private sector, with the aim of generating profit. Private organizations are characterized by their primary goal of profit, regardless of whether they provide services or produce goods; they aim for profit in all circumstances. Most clubs are essentially profit-driven companies, and their primary area of ​​activity is football (24:9). Al-Saadani Khalil points out that the sports field has given rise to a number of new phenomena that have established themselves as fundamental rules and principles. One of these phenomena is the professional system, which entered the sports field as a natural consequence of market changes and to raise the level and quality of performance in sports, as in other fields, in order to achieve competitiveness in Arab and international arenas (25:8). Therefore, the professional athlete has become like a commodity whose prices rise and fall. This is so that he improves his performance, highlights his skill, and raises the professional level. This is the comprehensive meaning of professionalism. Therefore, professionalism in sports activities has become a vital requirement among the requirements of the modern century. No official or researcher can ignore professionalism, but the experience of professionalism must stem from the circumstances and economies of each country (13:1). Although there is a professional system in many countries that is being implemented with great precision, and although there are countries that apply professionalism in Yemen, the professional system in Yemen will remain a unique case for several reasons confirmed by the regulations and the discussions of the committees that are always held on this system. The task of this committee was to search for the basic reasons for the problems of football that led to the decline in the level of the game, as the system was one of the most prominent obstacles with multiple problems that affect the course of football. Therefore, experts and specialists at the local and Arab levels agree that the reason for the lack of rise in the level of the game is the deficiency in the application of the professional system because it does not conform to the real professional systems, which is an integrated system, and what is applied in Yemen and some Arab countries is only the word and not the system, without implementing its true meaning and not providing the basic requirements such as the (14:p3) system.