The PSL Premiership sponsorship is now bigger than ever and the PSL bigwigs would have been silently delighted that DStv had pulled out with a year remaining on their sponsorship contract.
Herman Gibbs
DStv’s unexpected decision to end its sponsorship with the Premier Soccer League (PSL) despite its contractual obligation with a year remaining on their agreement has proved a boon in disguise.
In May the PSL was plunged into despair and its hierarchy was wholly unprepared for the dire situation. However, by default, Betway, a British online gambling company, replaced DStv as the title sponsor of the PSL Premiership.
The PSL Premiership sponsorship is now bigger than ever and the PSL bigwigs would have been silently delighted that DStv had pulled out with a year remaining on their sponsorship contract.
A few days ago, Irvin Khoza, the chairperson of the (PSL), announced that the Betway Premiership winners will receive R20 million. This is an increase of R5 million on what Mamelodi Sundowns received for winning last season’s DStv Premiership.
Betway’s sponsorship is a three-year deal worth R900 million.
In recent years, governments around the world had legislation in place exempting football clubs from a betting sponsorship ban. Previously, sports organisations were restricted from accepting sponsorships from gambling and betting companies.
When it became known that PSL Premiership was without a sponsor, Betway moved in with an irresistible offer. A few months earlier, Betway made inroads on the national sporting front by giving Cricket South Africa a title sponsorship for their T20 Challenge competition. This would have made the PSL feel better about joining forces with a betting company.
This decision was also surprising because the PSL opposed sponsorships for the now-defunct Moroka Swallows and Cape Town City. During his recent announcement, Khoza was at pains to declare that Swallows, by their admission, were not fully compliant.
City dug their heels in and their sponsorship continued.
DStv’s withdrawal came at a bad time because the PSL were preparing for the new season. Over the next few weeks, the PSL organisation left much to be desired because the Premiership made a late start. The sponsorship withdrawal affected the fixture schedule and teams’ kits for the next season.
In mid-July, football clubs would normally reveal their kits for the forthcoming season but the message from the PSL’s Parktown office was “hold your horses”. Clubs were requested “to put on hold the process of finalising their kit …”
The breaks in fixture schedules meant some clubs were left kicking their heels on the sidelines for two weeks or longer. These were strange situations for clubs and some coaches said they were forced to set up training centres similar to pre-season camps.
In light of the sponsorship saga, the pre-season fixture mess followed but no one would be held accountable. The PSL hierarchy structure is such that they are not accountable for mishaps or lack of organisation. The 16 PSL Premiership club owners also hold down the position of club chairman and eight of them serve on the PSL executive.
They will not appoint professionals to administer the day-to-day functions. In recent years, the PSL took this a step further by operating without a CEO. Instead one of the club bosses is the acting CEO.
They are responsible for the day-to-day running of the league even though it has been pointed out that it is a serious conflict of interest.
This state of affairs is likely to continue for the next year because there will be no change in the PSL hierarchy once the November 23 elections are done and dusted. The PSL’s 76-year-old chairperson, Khoza will run unopposed.
He has run unopposed for two decades. It’s not that there were never other candidates, but no one has ever been bold enough to oppose the ‘Iron Duke.’
On November 23, Khoza starts his next four-year reign, and he’ll be 80 when that term ends.
