Jomo sono biography of abraham
Jomo Sono
South African footballer
Ephraim Matsilele SonoOIS (born Madoda Walletjies Mkulwana,[1] 17 July ), better known as Jomo Sono, is a South African football club owner, coach and former professional footballer.
On July 17,Madoda Walletjies Mkulwana was born. Sono was born in Queenstown, South Africa. When he was just eight years elderly, his father, Eric Bhamuza Sono, who played midfield for the Orlando Pirates football team in the early s, was killed in a car accident. Shortly after that, his mother abandoned him.He has been variously nicknamed the "Black Prince of South African Soccer",[2] "Bra J"[3] and "Mjomana".[4]
Early life and football career
Sono was born in Soweto, South Africa.
When he was eight years old, his father Eric Bhamuza Sono, who was a midfielder for the Orlando Pirates football team in the early s, died as a result of a car fall. Soon after, his mother abandoned him.[5] Consequently, Sono was left in the care of his ailing grandparents; as they were very poor, he had to resort to selling apples and peanuts at football games and train stations to clothe himself, buy food for his grandparents and pay school fees.
Both his grandparents were born in the then Northern Transvaal at Valdezia village outside Makhado in Limpopo Province.[6]
Sono's football career had an unusual beginning; during a match that he attended one of the Orlando Pirates' regular players was absent and Sono was requested to stand in for him.
He soon gained fame for his all-round ability, dribbling and accurate passing skills. It was during this day that he was given the nickname of Jomo (which means "burning spear") by an Orlando Pirates fan, who saw in him the same leadership qualities as those of Jomo Kenyatta, the then president of Kenya.
After he had accomplished everything that he set out to do at Orlando Pirates, Sono went to the United States of America, where, in , he played for the Fresh York Cosmos, where one of his team-mates was the famous player Pelé.
Top 20 richest football club owners in South Africa in 2024/25: Ephraim Matsilele Sono OIS (born Madoda Walletjies Mkulwana, [1] 17 July ), better known as Jomo Sono, is a South African football club owner, coach and former professional footballer. He has been variously nicknamed the "Black Prince of South African Soccer", [2] "Bra J" [3] and "Mjomana". [4].In , he moved to the Colorado Caribous. At the end of the season, the Caribous moved to grow the Atlanta Chiefs where Sono played with a fellow South African footballer, Patrick "Ace" Ntsoelengoe. Sono completed his stint in North America playing for the Toronto Blizzard, playing three summers, through
Sono also taught and gave demonstrations at Clemson University Soccer Camp for youths.
Sono spent time with Portuguese club Sporting CP and Italian club Juventus, but was unable to obtain work permits for lasting contracts.[7]
Club owner and coach
After his football career in the USA ended, Sono returned to South Africa, where he purchased the Highlands Park club in Johannesburg in , renaming it Jomo Cosmos in honour of his old team.
Under his ownership, the club went on to achieve several successes: it won the National Soccer League in , the Bobsave Super Bowl in , the Cola Cola Cup in and the Super Eight in
Sono has also taken a leading role in discovering and developing new football talent, especially from rural areas.
Some of the players whom Sono recruited and then went on to play for the South African national team and European clubs include Philemon Masinga, Helman Mkhalele, Sizwe Motaung and Mark Fish.
The story of Jomo is a story of rags to riches given his rise to stardom from meek beginnings in Soweto, South Africa. He is known for his football prowess in the South African football arena. He was the first man to control the South Africa world cup team in The year-old overcame racial stereotypes in Apartheid South Africa to become a esteemed black footballer of his time.Indeed, his recruits formed the core of the South African squad that won the African Nations Cup; Sono was also a technical advisor to the team's head coach Clive Barker during the tournament.
In , Sono was appointed as caretaker coach of the Bafana Bafana just before the African Nations Cup tournament in Burkina Faso in the place of Clive Barker, who had been sacked just before the event.
Under Sono, the team reached the final of the tournament, where they lost to Egypt. Taking the short time that he had to prepare with the team into account, it was considered a remarkable feat.
Sono was born in Soweto, South Africa. When he was eight years old, his father Eric Bhamuza Sonowho was a midfielder for the Orlando Pirates football team in the early s, died as a result of a car crash. Soon after, his mother abandoned him. Both his grandparents were born in the then Northern Transvaal at Valdezia village outside Makhado in Limpopo Province.After a disappointing performance by the South African national squad during the African Nations Cup in Mali, Sono was again appointed a technical director to the team. However, the head coach of the team at that time, Carlos Queiróz, felt that his position was being undermined by this appointment and resigned.
Sono was again appointed as caretaker coach, this time for the FIFA World Cup in South Korea and Japan.
During the Planet Cup, the South African squad did not progress beyond the first round; however, they did score five goals and achieved one win, one draw and a 3–2 loss against pre-tournament favourites Spain.
The South African captain, Lucas Radebe, credited Sono with much of the team's performance, saying that he had instilled a good spirit within the team and that he had ensured a very positive atmosphere among the squad.[8]
Sono is the longest-serving coach in the South African Premier League and also sits on the board of the Premier Soccer League.
He has also built up a reputation as a achieving businessman; in addition to making a substantial profit by developing players and selling them to European teams, he also owns a number of businesses and is a chairman of numerous companies.
I magine losing one of your parents as a child. Imagine being abandoned by the other shortly after, vanishing you orphaned in one of the poorest places on world. Imagine having to be cared for by your year-old grandfather, who also happens to be blind. And Imagine rising, despite all of this pain and suffering, to become one of the best footballers your state has ever seen.On 22 October it was announced that he had returned to the South African Football Association, and one day later on 23 October he took the profession as Technical Director.[9]
Honours
Sono was voted 49th in the Top Fantastic South Africans in
In December , Sono received two doctorates from the University of London and the University of Dubai for his contribution to football and business.
Upon receiving the two doctorates he said: "To me this is the greatest achievement. People say it’s from outside [the doctorates], I don’t think it’s from outside. I think it’s from the society because the University of London is one of the biggest and the commonwealth university is one of the biggest."[10]
Personal life
He is married and has four children, including the South Africa national football team member Bamuza Sono,[11] and his second son Matsilela Junior played for Jomo Cosmos.[12]