Metropolitan, Basutoland Ink boost league teams

MASERU – Metropolitan Lesotho and Basutoland Ink have joined forces to sponsor five Econet Premier League teams with kits for this season.
Metropolitan has put down M500 000 and each team will receive M100 000 to purchase a home kit.
100 replicas will also be sold by each club.

Basutoland Ink, for their part, will supply the clubs with an away kit each.
Liphakoe, Swallows, Lijabatho, Sefotha-fotha and Lifofane are the teams that will benefit from the sponsorship which is just for the 2019/20 season.
It is the second year in a row Metropolitan sponsors top-flight clubs with jerseys – Last year the insurance company forked out M360 000 to secure kits for Likhopo, Liphakoe, Majantja, Sefotha-fotha, Swallows and relegated Galaxy – while this is the first time Basutoland Ink comes on board.

Premier League Management Committee (PLMC) chairman Ikarabelle Sello said the league felt competition in the top-flight was one sided because some teams were struggling to secure sponsorship while others had no such worries.  “We wanted all the 14 teams to have competition in the league, if our league is competitive we will have players for the national team so that we can compete in FIFA (and) CAF competitions because in COSAFA we are doing well, but we can see we are growing,” Sello said.

However, Sello warned the league is not encouraging teams to sit around and not look for partnerships with companies.
He said this deal is to help even the playing field in the Econet Premier League.
“As the Premier League we want to see the businesses in the country helping us to grow in football and we are thankful that Metropolitan Lesotho and Basutoland Ink entered into this partnership with us,” Sello said.

Speaking on behalf of Metropolitan Lesotho, its managing director, Mamello Phomane, said investing in sports is the company’s priority because it wants to help build sport in the country.
She said sport brings people together and investing in it is a way to give back to the community.
“It is our pleasure to announce the sponsorship of Metropolitan Lesotho and the Premier League for the clubs in the league that do not have kit sponsors,” Phomane said.

“We advised ourselves to lend a helping hand to those five teams to the value of half a million with M100 000 going to each team in order for them to buy kits and other technical equipment they need. They are also meant to make a little bit of money from the sponsorship as well because they are supposed to buy 100 replicas that they can sell to the fans and anybody who is inclined,” she said.
“For us investing in sports is very important primarily because we know that sport brings people together, it builds societies, it brings cohesion and for us to invest in our communities is very important as a way of giving back,” Phomane added.

“Basutoland Ink has also hopped in to the party as well and we appreciate it so much. ‘Together we can’ is our motto as Metropolitan Lesotho, together we can build sports in the country and we hope that with this investment in the Premier League will help these teams to compete at same level with other teams.”

Tlalane Phahla