Silver Strikers and Mighty Wanderers have expressed dissatisfaction with the K23.8 million gross revenue generated during their TNM Super League match at Bingu National Stadium (BNS) in Lilongwe on Saturday.
The figure is far below the K112 million generated from the 2025 FDH Bank Cup final between the two teams at the same venue a fortnight ago.
Both Silver and Wanderers said the figure was not a true reflection of the turnout at the giant sports facility.
The two teams have also bemoaned operating expenses of playing the match.
Out of K23 million, K17.6 million was used for making other payments, with the two teams going back home with K1.7 million.
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Silver Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Patrick Chimimba said he was disappointed with the gate collections.
But Chimimba attributed the low amount to a number of factors, including operating expenses and weather conditions.
“We are disappointed with the gross revenue. We did not expect it but it happened to due to several factors. Moving the game to BNS meant the expenses were on the higher side.
“For instance, we bought 200 litres of fuel for a generator due to an electric fault at the stadium. We also suspect that some watched the match using fake tickets,” he said.
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Chimimba said the weather also contributed to the low turnout.
Last season, the Super League match between Silver and Wanderers grossed K33 million at Silver Stadium in Lilongwe.
But Saturday’s match was moved to BNS from Silver for safety reasons and poor condition of the Area 47 pitch.
Wanderers CEO Panganeni Ndovi said he was also disappointed with the revenue.
“The figures are extremely concerning. We are spending far more than what we are collecting at the gate and this trend is not sustainable.
“There is clear evidence of systematic theft within the ticketing process and related schemes, and this continues to undermine our revenue,” he said.
Ndovi said there was a need to find immediate solutions to the challenges.
“To address this, we urgently need to introduce e-ticketing and pre-match day sales to close the leakages and ensure full accountability. Until we reform the system, these losses will persist,” Ndovi said.
Ground owners Ministry of Youth, Sports and Culture got K1.7 million as their 25 percent levy.
The ministry’s spokesperson Macmillan Mwale said the gross collection was below what they expected.
“We expected more revenue considering the stature of the teams that were playing. Adverse weather and poor publicity might have played a big role in the low turnup,” he said.
The match ended in a 2-2 stalemate.
