National Veterans Tournament USA is bringing together Soccer Lovers in their Thousands – Hear from the President Dr. Charles Yakum

August 29, 2022
Lema M. Abeng
Posted in Around The World Interviews

Hotlanta was at it again this past summer with teeming parties celebrating high school graduations and kids heading off to college. When I walked into this particular Sunday evening party there were so many friends to chat with, several of them from out of town whom I had not met in years. But one particular conversation led to much more.

Little did I know that a hot item was about to be dropped on my laps when a gentleman pulled me to the side to talk about “Veterans” and their upcoming tournament. He was passionate and insistent as he laid out the journey of the National Veterans Tournament USA Football Association (NVT-USA FA) borne from a small get-together of a few Cameroonian football (soccer) enthusiasts back in 2015 to now a couple of thousand members and growing, heading to Maryland USA for their annual event. My interest was piqued.

One could make the argument that football is considered a “national sport” of sorts for most Africans. I was intrigued to learn about the game bringing together large numbers in the diaspora under the umbrella of NVT-USA. Often when I introduce myself as a Cameroonian to Americans and other Europeans, soccer lovers immediately mention Roger Milla, Samuel Eto’o … and sometimes Jay-Jay Okocha (ha,ha,ha). I often remind them Okocha is from Nigeria, but we are one people.

Mr. Denis Nyambi is the gentleman I had the pleasure of chatting with at the party. However, you are about to read from the current president of NVT – Dr. Charles Yakum, PhD in Electronics and Electrical Engineering from the University of Liverpool in England, and MBA from the University of Texas at Dallas, where he currently resides with his family and works as a program director for a well-known wireless company.

Dr. Yakum says he has had a “deep love for the game of football (soccer)” since he was a young boy that has stayed with him up until this date. He has been a member of NVT-USA FA since its official inception in 2016 and says that since becoming National President of the organization in 2021, “I live and breathe NVT, and I am extremely honored to be working alongside an excellent team of talented and dedicated football (soccer) lovers across North America.”

The following interview for DUNIA Magazine was prepared by Innocent Chia and I.

National Veterans Tournament USA Football Association

Allen Veterans FC pictured with Mbouh Mbouh Emile, former captain of the Indomitable Lions of Cameroon (Cameroon National Team), 2016 NVT

DUNIA Magazine: Thank you for joining us here at DUNIA Dr. Yakum. Word on the street is that you are at the helm of an organization with the best kept little secret on organizing and growing a Veterans Soccer/football tournament that is well into its 8th Season. How did NVT-USA FA come about and what are its main goals?

Dr. Charles Yakum, NVT National President

Dr. Charles Yakum: First, “Thank You”, DUNIA MAGAZINE, for giving me this golden opportunity to talk about the National Veterans Tournament USA Football Association (NVT-USA FA). It is a great pleasure and an honor for me to use your platform to showcase NVT-USA FA. So, thank you again.

NVT-USA FA came about because of a strong passion and love for the game of soccer/football. This started because of a structured VFC (Veterans Football Club) Maryland which was one of the first organized veterans club in the USA. The leaders had the vision to use football to improve health, build relationships, establish a strong support system, establish an arena of networking amongst the Cameroonian male community and being “your brother’s keeper.” After multiple meetings and eventual trips to different states to share the vision and to encourage others in those localities to organize into veteran clubs, the “National Veterans Tournament” (NVT) USA was eventually created. VFC Maryland, Atlanta Veterans, Delaware Veterans, and Boston Veterans were the four clubs that met in Maryland in 2015 for the first tournament and laid down the framework for the creation of NVT. Atlanta Veterans Club was voted to host the first official NVT. Nine clubs eventually participated in this first official NVT, and the rest is history.

The main goals of NVT are to promote fitness, healthy living, and charitable activities not only for our members but for our communities at large. The idea is to promote a year-round exercising routine through the game of soccer at our various local club localities nationwide and to promote awareness of the reality, importance, and effect of exercise, as a contributing factor to healthy living and social wellbeing. NVT also organizes an annual ceremonial but competitive keep-fit event hosted by one of the member clubs. And finally, we carry out various activities to contribute to the good of society, such as promoting diversity and inclusion, responsible citizenship, education and development of youths, and humanitarian gestures.

Your organization is projected to rally as many as 6,000 people over the Labor Day weekend in Washington D.C this year. What would you say is the appeal to come and watch the guys play? Are there some former star players (examples) that continue to mesmerize or is this an opportunity for great comedy on soccer fields?

Dr. Charles Yakum: The appeal is to come out in Maryland to watch quality soccer. Besides the growth in numbers that provides for an excellent networking environment, NVT is also attracting global talents. We expect to have amongst us some stars who have played or have been involved with soccer at very high levels. Just to name a few that I am currently aware of, we will have: Dr. Njume Ntoko Roland – former player of the indomitable Lions of Cameroon (Cameroon National Team). Eyong Enoh – former assistant Captain of the Indomitable Lions of Cameroon. Kale Sone – former player of the Dutch top division, SBV Vitesse, whom I watched play against my darling club Liverpool FC in Anfield. George Elokobi – former player of Wolverhampton Wanderers in the English Premier League. And Njomo Kevin – a veteran sports journalist who is a former journalist with CRTV (Cameroon Radio Television). I am sure there are other top professionals who will be present as well, but these are the ones I have been made aware of, thus far. That said, there will definitely be opportunities for great comedy on the soccer fields when some veterans will try to do what their current physical strengths can no longer allow.

What is the definition of a Veteran in your organization? Is it an age thing or the fact that qualified players are no longer actively playing in a professional league? Do your members consist of nationalities other than Cameroonians?

Dr. Charles Yakum: NVT-USA defines a veteran based upon age. Per our bylaws, participants in the NVT must be 35 years or older to be eligible to play. And we are stepping up our efforts to verify and validate that all participants meet the stipulated age requirement to allow for a fair competition. There is also a clause that stipulates that a qualified player must no longer be actively playing professional soccer.

Participation in NVT is open to all nationalities. There are many NVT clubs that have active members/players from different countries, including from other African countries and from other countries including American nationals.

There are currently 32 teams that will be participating at this year’s tournament in Washington D.C. 32 teams! That is as many as the number of qualifying teams at this year’s FIFA world cup games in Qatar. Whereas the games in Qatar last a month, your tournament is only for 5 days. What are the logistics for such a tight schedule?

Dr. Charles Yakum: Quite true. We have a very tight schedule for our tournament because it is difficult to pull the required resources for veterans and their families to spend a much longer duration at the NVT event location. In our case we do not earn a living from playing soccer, hence it is structured to take place over 5 days instead of over a month. As a result of this, our schedules are more intense because during our tournament each club will play 2 games each day during the group stage and on the second day some teams will even play 3 games. This is very different from the world cup where back-to-back games for a given team are spread over a few days giving the players enough time to recuperate. To somewhat compensate for the tight and very intense schedules, substitution is unlimited for players during our games. We even allow for a player to go in and out multiple times in a game. In addition, we play 30-minute halves instead of 45-minute halves in the world cup, except for our finals which we typical go for 40-minute halves. Despite all these it is still very tasking for our players to handle these many games over a few days.

Are there any bets for tournament favorites or is it the case that each year has brought with it some major surprises and new tournament favorites? What do tournament winners take home with the trophy?

Dr. Charles Yakum: I won’t bet on tournament favorites. I have seen the performances and qualities of teams change from one year to another, so it is a little difficult for me to make an intelligent bet on this. That said, for the past 5 tournaments we have had one club, Gwinnett Veterans Soccer Club, that has been 3-time finalists and 2-time champions from those three. Of course, the past is no determinant of the future. The other teams that have won the championship trophy include Allen Veterans FC, VFC Maryland, and Spartan Veterans FC (the current defending champions). So, it remains to be seen and I will refrain from making a bet on favorites.

The winning team (champions) will take home a prestigious championship trophy-cup, medals for the players, and two thousand dollars ($2,000.00). The cash award is insignificant, but teams don’t really look too much into the amount. The biggest thing is the bragging rights – to walk away as the NVT champions for that year.

Leading an organization that has over 2,000 members is not a piece of cake. Name your biggest challenge at the head of the organization and your most memorable joy so far?

Dr. Charles Yakum: Yes, it is no small feat to lead an organization of this nature and magnitude. I literally live and breathe the NVT every day. Having said that, the way NVT is structured makes it relatively easier to manage it than it appears. The over 2,000 strong members belong to the 40 Clubs that are currently registered with NVT. The National Executive Committee (NEC) which comprises of an elected President, Secretary-General, Treasurer, Financial Secretary, and other Presidential appointees including the heads of key mission committees and Public Relations Officer form the supreme administrative organ. Then there is a National Advisory Board (NAB) consisting of two team representatives (Club President plus one) from each of the participating clubs, the past presidents, and the NEC. The function of the National Advisory Board is to vote on rules, regulations, resolutions, and bylaws for the operation of the NVT. When decisions are reached at the National Advisory Board level, the Club Presidents drive the actions to their various clubs. So as National President of NVT I do not necessarily need to reach out to all the veterans directly. This structure makes leading the organization relatively easier than it may appear.

My biggest challenge so far is working with my team to eradicate age fraud during our tournaments. Our bylaws stipulates that each player must be at least 35 years in order to participate. However, the past has been plagued with age fraud and I continue to get the intelligence that some teams are still planning to cheat by fielding younger players in an attempt to get an edge to win the tournament. I am extremely determined to put an end to this. Any club that violates this stipulation will be fined and banned for two years from NVT. After all there are many other clubs on the waiting list (8 Clubs currently) anxiously looking for an opportunity to participate in the competitive tournament next year.

The most memorable joy so far has been seeing some of my colleagues in NEC and NAB dedicate and sacrifice so much to do great things for NVT, all for the love of the game. It gives me great joy to see this. As my 8 years old daughter usually reminds me, there is a Maxwell quote that goes: “Teamwork makes the dream work, but a vision becomes a nightmare when the leader has a big dream and a bad team”.

Beyond what transpires on the field of play and in ballroom dance floors, your organization has shown itself as a budding charitable organization. If it had to be remembered for one particular area of charity, what would that be and why?

Dr. Charles Yakum: Yes, we created a Humanitarian Committee to help NVT to continue to demonstrate our dedication to and belief in the fundamental value of human life. The responsibilities of this committee are to determine humanitarian cases that come to our attention where action is needed to save a life or lives, alleviate suffering, and maintain human dignity. The committee reviews each such humanitarian case and determines the authenticity and merits of the specific case and then initiate a free-will donation drive to support a given validated case, using our NVT general forum. The committee executes these responsibilities in accordance with the humanitarian principles of humanity, neutrality, impartiality, and independence. There are four solid cases that the committee has fully delivered on and due to privacy reasons, I cannot give the full details of each case.

How are you going to define success at the end of your term as President of the organization?

Dr. Charles Yakum: This is a great question. My vision is for NVT to be an organization that provides a high quality and an enjoyable experience for every veteran on and off the pitch while creating a financially sustainable organization through attracting external funding. That said, success at the end of my term will be determined mainly by how well I achieve the desires of the veterans who make up the NVT. We conduct lessons learned exercises at the conclusion of the NVT with three principal questions for each club to answer, namely: 5 things that went well; 5 things that did not go well and suggestions to improve those; and 5 new things that we need to start doing. Success to me will be determined by how well I transform the organization to address all the inputs from these lessons learned exercises. The ultimate success for me will be if clubs find it hard to list or point out some things that did not go well at the NVT. I consider all veterans as “customers” to NVT and the voice of the customer will determine the success at the end of my term as President. It should be noted that NVT-USA FA has a two-year term of office for the President, and this is non-renewable. Thus, it is a short duration to be at the helm of this organization.

Thank you for sharing this incredible information with us today. What closing words would you like to leave us with on behalf of NVT-USA FA?

Dr. Charles Yakum: Once again, thank you for the opportunity to talk about NVT. I am constantly looking for various avenues to showcase and elevate NVT – so I appreciate the opportunity you have given me to do so through DUNIA Magazine.

In closing, I would like to say that NVT-USA FA is up to something great. We are gearing up to the 2022 edition of the NVT, which is scheduled to take place in the beautiful city of Belair in the wonderful state of Maryland. The event will be held from Thursday, September 1st through Monday, September 5th, 2022. I would like to invite your readership to come and witness this wonderful event. It will be time well spent and you will enjoy every part of it. Our 2022 NVT host club is VFC Maryland, and they have put together a very enticing program of events for all. So don’t miss out. Please come out there to socialize, network, and enjoy the experience. All roads lead to Maryland for 2022 NVT.

National Veterans Tournament USA Football Association

Please permit me share some of the program of events that our very abled host, VFC Maryland, has in store for us all. The games will be played on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. There will be an impressive assortment of exotic African cuisine to keep guests entertained while games are in progress. And this is designed as a community event that seeks to showcase, leverage, and encourage entrepreneurs within the DMV (DC, Maryland, and Virginia) metro areas. There shall be numerous vendors onsite with a variety of African arts and crafts. There will be an Olympic style opening ceremony that is planned for 9am on Friday at the Cedar Lane Regional Park to launch this year’s tournament. After the games, the evenings shall be spiced with several social events to ensure a very pleasant and memorable weekend in Maryland. There will be a welcome party on Friday evening with food, drinks, and a live music band performance. Then on Saturday evening there will be an “all-white” elegance party at the Patapsco Arena with live performances from renowned musical artists Grace Decca and Tzy Panchak. Then Sunday evening will witness the 2022 formal NVT signature gala at the Patapsco Arena where we will celebrate our collective achievements, crown the winner of the soccer tournament (champions), and recognize other teams and veterans who have performed well. The final event will be a great farewell BBQ cookout for veterans, families, and friends. Once again, all roads lead to Maryland for 2022 NVT. Thank you.

Mayor of Houston-TX during the opening ceremony of 2021 NVT in Houston, pictured standing between Houston Veterans Soccer Club President and Vice President.