Major blow for the PSL
SPONSOR: BANKING GIANT DECIDES NOT TO RENEW DEAL Global downturn for a number of years forced Absa to review how their resources are allocated.
South African domestic football suffered a major blow yesterday, with the announcement that Absa is ending it’s 13-year sponsorship of the Absa Premiership.
The bank signed up for a R100 million-a-season title sponsorship of the Absa Premiership in 2007, and renewed that deal in 2017, for three years, with an option to extend at the end of the 2019/20 campaign.
Absa have, however, not taken up that option.
“The reality is we have had a 16 year relationship with the PSL (including the Absa Cup), 13 with the league (Premiership), and our executive has made a decision in light of what is best for our business,” Absa’s Head of Sponsorship Mthunzi Jonas told the Citizen yesterday.
“It has been a fantastic ride for that time period, and the focus should be about celebrating the impact Absa has made on football for such a long time period. You don’t get sponsorships that usually run for that length of time.”
The Premier Soccer League Board of Governors met yesterday and the league issued a statement in which chairman Irvin Khoza said:
“The Absa Premiership era will forever be a reference point for football glory, both in term of club development and player performance in our sports history. The PSL is grateful to Absa for strengthening the league to true professionalism.”
Jonas, meanwhile, added that while Absa could yet sponsor a PSL competition again in the future, the current economic climate is making it very difficult for all businesses, and that the problems started well before the coronavirus pandemic.
“I don’t think the economic challenges in this country or in the world started three months ago. There has been a global downturn for a number of years, and as with any business we continually review how our resources will be allocated on an annual basis…this was part of that,” said Jonas.
“Anyone who says economic challenges only started with Covid-19 is missing a big part of what is taking place.”
He also noted the great strides that the Premiership has made since Absa took over as title sponsors in 2007.
“The impact has been significant, and not just on the football pitch, that is just one component. There is a world class broadcast product, a micro-economy has developed around football and probably the most telling…is that sponsorships and the revenue generated feeds into the monthly grants that clubs get.
“Over and above that, you have 31 million people who watch every year, they can’t be wrong.”