Football Association of Malawi (Fam) has said it is optimistic that National Bank of Malawi (NBM) plc will continue bankrolling football following success stories in the inaugural edition.
Fam President Fleetwood Haiya made the remarks after the conclusion of the NBM Under-23 National Championship at Champion Stadium in Mponela Township, Dowa District on Sunday, where Mponela FC emerged inaugural winners.
Haiya said he was optimistic that the bank would be motivated to continue sponsoring the tournaments following the success of the tournaments.
“We are excited that we have given NBM good value for their sponsorship, for the first time Champion Stadium witnessed a huge crowd for junior teams, the matches were beamed on television and all social platforms. It was a wonderful tournament and it is our prayer that the bank has come to stay,” Haiya said.
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Fam and NBM signed a K1.58 billion one-year football sponsorship in July last year.
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The bank dedicated K500 million towards NBM National Championship, targeting Districts and Division One men’s football.
Haiya hailed the bank for promoting the growth of football in the country.
“Firstly, let me thank NBM for believing in our vision of making sure that we give youngsters an opportunity to showcase their skills and talent. Most of the corporates do not believe in such competitions as they do not attract huge crowds compared to senior teams but NBM believed in our dream, for this we do not take this for granted,” Haiya said.
NBM Chief Risk Officer Charles Ulaya said the inaugural championship surpassed their expectations as it provided a good platform for young players to showcase their skills and talent.
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“We are impressed with the performance of the organisers as well as the teams that participated. We have seen Mponela becoming the champions. The first thing we wanted was to unleash talent from the villages and also to make sure that all the districts participate in the championship,” he said.
Apart from sponsoring the NBM U-23 National Championship, the bank also sponsored the first ever Women’s Premiership.
The bank dedicated K430 million for women’s football, with K280 million meant for the league and K150 million for the Scorchers.
Ulaya said the bank was optimistic that more players from the championship would be selected for the Under-23 National Football Team soon.
“We are also looking forward to the national team, possibly the U-23, to use it as a yardstick where they can choose some players,” Ulaya said.
Ulaya said the bank was reviewing the sponsorship for the championship.
“We know people are anxious but we know what we are doing as the largest bank in the country,” Ulaya said.
Mponela emerged champions after beating Karonga United Reserves 3-2 on post-match penalties after a goalless draw in regulation time.
The champions pocketed K10 million whereas Karonga got K4 million.
Haward Kamuona from Mponela was voted player of the tournament whereas his teammate Archangel Mayola won the golden boot award. Richard Nyirenda from Karonga was named the best goalkeeper.
