Vodacom Lesotho and the Premier League Management Committee (PLMC) are in advanced talks to renew Vodacom’s sponsorship of Lesotho’s elite league. Vodacom’s three-year sponsorship of the premiership officially ended at the conclusion of the 2023/24 season in May and PLMC chairman Hubbard Monaheng said talks over a renewal are at an advanced stage.
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Monaheng was speaking at the Premier League’s end of season awards ceremony at Avani Maseru last Friday.
He said the negotiating parties are hoping to agree to a new deal soon.
Vodacom replaced Econet as the league’s sponsors in December 2020 with a massive M8.5 million sponsorship deal over three years, which became the biggest ever deal in Lesotho sport.
Vodacom and PLMC officials have refused to go into specifics but sources said the sponsorship figure is likely to go up.
Whatever happens, the PLMC want to have the deal in place in time for the start of the 2024/25 season tentatively slated to start at the beginning of September.
“The discussions are at an advanced stage and we are praying and hoping we will seal the deal in the near future,” Monaheng said.
Monaheng said a few details are being ironed out, including how the partnership will benefit both sides.
“We realised if we can approach the sponsorship the way it has been done over the years, we will always come up short (as the Premier League) because each company has its terms and conditions, and the money they say they will use,” he said.
“We have adopted a model where we say maybe let’s try to syndicate football sponsorship whereas Vodacom will benefit from their particular sector and the league benefits as well,” Monaheng added.
Since 2002, the country’s pair of telecommunications giants, Vodacom Lesotho and Econet Telecom Lesotho, have sponsored the Premier League.
Econet, through its prepaid product Buddie, sponsored the Premier League from 2002 until 2009 when the league signed a three-year pact with Vodacom Lesotho which saw
Lesotho’s first-ever M1 million sponsorship.
The sponsorship amount of the Premier League has steadily increased over the past decade and the PLMC is hoping the trend continues.
Monaheng said the Premier League has also signed a deal with South African company Vision View TV to stream all league games next season.
Vision View TV is a new streaming platform that broadcasts multiple sporting codes live and on demand across Africa and the world.
Monaheng said the streaming deal with Vision View TV would help the league promote their players all over the world, which can open doors for them.
“This is an opportunity for our players to get the exposure that we need so that we can export the talent we have. We already have talent,” Monaheng said.
Monaheng pleaded with other companies to come to the party and join Vodacom so that teams can pay their players.
Premier League award winners:
Assistant Referee of the Season
Thabelo Ntaote (M5 000)
Referee of the Season
Samson Molelekoa (M6 000)
Defender of the Season
Mafa Moremoholo (M9 000)
Midfielder of the Season
Jerry Kamela (M9 000)
Goalkeeper of the season
William Huni (M9 000)
Young Player of the Season
Katleho Koeana (M9 500)
Coach of the Season
Motheo Mohapi (M12 000)
Player’s Player of the Season
Lemohang Lintša (M12 000)
Top Goal Scorer
Lemohang Lintša (M13 500)
Player of the Season
Jerry Kamela (M15 000)
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