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Britam express interest in KPL sponsorship


British American Investment Company (Britam) on Wednesday declared interest in acquiring the title sponsorship rights for the Kenyan Premier League.

This was revealed by the financial services firm’s Group Managing Director Benson Wairegi.

He said: “Am told the competition is currently referred to as the Tusker Premier League, but it could soon be the Britam Premier League.”

This development is certain to not only mark a strong sporting statement, but could also formally spark a bidding battle for the title rights of the top flight football competition in the coming few months.

The move comes amid increased investor confidence in football, with Supersport, Azam, MP and Silva and Star Times among the foreign companies that have or are about to pump hundreds of millions of shillings into local football.

East African Breweries Limited under the Tusker brand, have been the league’s title sponsors for the past two seasons, in a deal worth Sh57 million annually. The agreement expires this December.

Wairegi was speaking at the Nyayo Stadium as Britam formally unveiled a Sh100 million, three-year shirt sponsorship deal with Mathare United.

This is the second major sporting deal involving Britam in the past month. The other agreement worth a similar amount was signed with the Government of Kenya for the branding rights of the Nyayo Stadium.

“We have suffered financially in the past few seasons, but am now certainly we have turned the corner and are on course to winning the premiership in the next three seasons,” Mathare United chairman and founder, Bob Munro said.

“All the players are excited by this development. We have made several sacrifices in the last few years but now we can concentrate on playing football and finishing in the top five position this season,” Mathare captain Vincent Okello added.

Mathare United have indeed struggled since winning the league and cup titles in 2008 and 2000 respectively.

The team has finished each of the past three league campaigns outside the top quarter, and are currently placed eleventh on the standings after nine rounds of matches.