Chippa United have withdrawn their decision to appoint Luc Eymael as their new coach following a public outcry over their announcement.
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Chippa revealed they had appointed Luc Eymael until the end of the season to replace Lehlohonolo Seema, but the decision was met with outrage by the South African Football Association (SAFA) and the Eastern Cape provincial government.
This follows racist remarks attributed to Eymael while he was in charge of Tanzanian side Young Africans earlier this year.
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“The club would like to formally announce that it has withdrawn the appointment of Belgian, Luc Eymael,” the Chilli Boys said in a statement on Thursday.
“When processes are complete, a new coaching announcement will be made in due course.
“After having announced Mr. Eymael’s appointment until the end of the season on Wednesday, 23 December 2020 – the club has considered public outrage.
“There was also the reputational damage caused to our brand; and that of our stakeholders, partners as well as our sponsors.
“We would like to clarify that the initial decision to make this appointment was based on Mr. Eymael’s coaching track record, where we felt he was the best person to take the club towards our desired top-half finish in this DStv Premiership season.
“Outside of the written reports, there was no formal instruction – to us or to any other team- to not employ Mr. Eymael.
“However, as the Pride of Eastern Cape, we represent the legacies of world-renowned anti-discrimination heroes that come from our Province.
“The Chilli Boys play an influential role to our surrounding communities through football and through our philanthropic work. We have people that look up to us and on the responsible decisions that we take.
“Our withdrawal of this appointment is an acknowledgement of our stance on such matters, with the club also having fully informed Mr. Eymael and his representatives on our position.”
