A former Kaizer Chiefs striker has revealed how much he earned when he started his career in the 1990s and says he is astonished at how much the current players are getting paid as the league in South Africa continues to evolve.
Having played at QwaQwa Stars (now Free State Stars) before moving to Vaal Professionals and Manning Rangers, it was after joining Chiefs in 2000 that some in the fraternity started to follow Fees Moloi's career seriously. The former striker didn't enjoy much success at the Soweto giants due to lack of regular game-time under the club's then-coach Muhsin Ertugral.
Moloi went on to play for Ria Stars, Santos, Bloemfontein Celtic and AmaZulu, among other clubs, with a few Bafana Bafana caps under his name and was known for his knack of scoring goals.
A teacher by profession, Moloi says his first salary in professional football was R1000 per month at Stars, which helped him to finance his studies.
"I remember my first salary as a professional footballer was R1000 per month. It was in 1994 and I was playing for Free State Stars. R200 would be added on top of that if I made the matchday squad to make it R1200 and it was enough for me to buy groceries, clothes and pay for my studies at the college as I was staying at home at the time. I see players these days earning a lot of money and I'm like 'wow these guys are so fortunate,' and don't know where we come from," said Moloi.
