Kenyan football is headed into turmoil once again after the league’s main sponsor BetKing and Football Kenya Federation(FKF) Premier League agreed to terminate sponsorship barely a year after the deal was announced.
The latest development has also affected the FKF Division one which was a beneficiary of the 1.2bn sponsorship that was to run for five years. In a letter signed by BetKing’s Country Director Ivana Ristic and FKF President Nick Mwendwa, the two parties decided to call it a day to compound more misery to the already limping league.
“Unreservedly, FKF confirms that the support received from BetKing has played a crucial part in fostering the growth of the local game.” “FKF confirms that the support has been immense in football programs by considerable measure,” the letter read.
“FKF appreciates BetKing’s support and partnership, FKF appreciates BetKing’s support and partnership over the past season,” the statement continued. On July 16, 2020, Kenyans witnessed a new dawn in football as FKF President Nick Mwendwa flanked by the federation CEO Barry Otieno announced the mega deal that was worth Ksh 1.2 billion spready over five years.
The curiosity grew when the announcement was made without any BetKing official in sight, in a later interview, Mwendwa said that that was an informal announcement with the main launch set for September 2020. In the deal, all FKF Premier League clubs were to get Ksh 8 million annually as part of the deal. Every game was to be televised live on mobile platforms but this was reduced to two matches every week after the broadcast partners Startimes came through.