Whenever we try to observe the ways snooker can improve its global position, we mainly target the North American region as an area which we would like to see embarked upon. While this would be a fortuitous area to try and enter, another area which I feel doesn’t get enough attention is Africa. This caused me to wonder about the popularity of the sport in that continent and whether there were relationships in place that would lead to future prosperity for snooker within the region.
Perrie Mans is probably the most notable player that has surfaced from Africa (South); a player that was a prolific winner of the South African Professional Championship, as well as 1978 WSC finalist and 1979 Masters winner. Other players included Silvino and Peter Francisco, who both managed to reach the Top 16 during the 1980s but not the level of success achieved by Mans.
The lack of prominent individuals emerging from Africa is perhaps part of the reason why the region is largely unspoken about. I imagine the same sort of thing would be happening with Australia if it wasn’t for Neil Robertson and his success in the sport. However, there are events and promotions in place that encourage participation and possible opportunities to compete on the Main Tour with the professionals.
Firstly, snooker in Africa is organised by the regional federation, the African Billiards and Snooker Confederation (ABSC), with ongoing partnerships with the WPBSA. The ABSC currently host a handful of events which include the African Mens, the highest ranking event whereby the winner qualifies to the Main Tour; the African 6-reds and Seniors, where each winner qualifies to the respective Main Tour counterparts; and a club event. There are plans to extend these opportunities to include women, under-21s and mixed doubles tournaments going into next year.
The ABSC mission is to include all countries within Africa as members of its organisation with the hope of raising snooker awareness and inclusivity. They are one-third of the way when it comes to attracting all nations to the Confederation (18/54) and have made substantial progress at involving snooker in large scale, Olympic-level events, such as the African Games and African University Games.
The ABSC’s mission of increasing its members will be aided by such events such as its inclusion in the regional games which generates significant media coverage. Currently, the limited list of members within the ABSC meant that the African Snooker Championship had primarily been won by those from Egypt or South Africa. However, the ability to win medals for playing snooker will inspire those countries and their residents to become members of the ABSC, taking the game forward.
While there is a growing interest for snooker in Africa and steps are being taken to promote the sport, the lack of a rising star may continually hinder its future chances of getting more recognition. Of those that managed to earn a tour card from winning the African Championship, none have been able to perform particularly well. This makes it increasingly difficult for Africa to get more attention, and the lack of a prominent figure won’t help in encouraging younger talent to take part in the sport.
It’s promising to see that an interest in snooker does exist within Africa, particularly from its inclusion into the African Games. Many may have assumed that snooker didn’t have much of a presence in Africa due to the lack of mentions in mainstage competition. Although, the fact that prospects for the game are budding and there is active promotion shows that chances for a future ranking event and further funding in Africa are not totally out of the question.
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