Mathare United files complaint over Betway deal

Mathare United have lodged a protest against the Kenyan Premier League (KPL) Ltd for their insistence to bar them from putting up their new sponsor’s banners in their home matches.

Club Chairman Bob Munroe on Monday wrote an official complaint to the league’s Independent Disciplinary and Complains Committee accusing both KPL and league sponsors SportPesa of unlawfully disallowing them from displaying the banners.

In the letter, Munroe raised a number of pertinent questions about the legibility of the multi-million contract signed between KPL and SportPesa last year, saying that a number of rules were violated in the process of signing the deal.

He also insisted that the decision to bar they sponsorship is an infringement on the natural laws of the club and would end up reducing the competitiveness of the top flight league.

“The KPL-SportPesa Agreement on July 17, 2015 was not signed with the prior informed consent and approval of the KPL Governing Council and was also not signed by the KPL chairman or any other KPL Director on behalf of the KPL clubs.

“Moreover, the agreement even specifically states that the exclusivity of SportPesa as the KPL Title Rights Sponsors dos not extend to the team sponsorship of individual teams,” the letter read in part.

Mathare United signed a long-term partnership with betting company Betway two months ago, and on September 26 the team showed up donning branded jerseys for the first time.

They have however been denied the home team’s privilege of putting up the Betway banners, the only explanation being that they are bound by the KPL-SportPesa contract not to allow any other betting company’s banners at the pitch side.

The club has indefinitely postponed the unveiling ceremony that was to be held this week.

KPL chairman Jack Oguda agreed that their deal with SportPesa does not prohibit clubs from entering into partnership with other betting companies, adding that he will call an urgent meeting of the Governing Council to discuss this issue

The last time a similar incident occurred was in May 2013 when AFC Leopards signed a lucrative Sh23 million sponsorship deal with pay TV channel Zuku, but the KPL management threatened to kick the 13-time champions out of the league.

The league organisers stated that the Zuku deal was in contravention to various clauses in their broadcast sponsorship with South African company SuperSport, and Ingwe had no choice but to cancel the deal.

Early this year, Ingwe had signed a three-year deal worth Sh100 million, but this was rendered null and void by the Sports Disputes Tribunal in the wake of deep divisions within the club’s leadership.