The sponsorships drain at the Botswana Football Association (BFA) continues to grow, with motor dealers Barloworld Motor Botswana being the latest to ditch the local football mother body.
This follows the lapse of a sponsorship agreement between the motor dealer and the BFA which saw Barloworld sponsor the senior national team coach with a vehicle.
Sunday Standard has established that the motoring company pulled the plug on their sponsorship after BFA parted ways with former national team gaffer Peter Butler a month ago.
It has however been revealed that despite Barloworld pulling out from extending their contract with BFA, the rugged VW Amarok was sold to the BFA at a discounted price.
The loss of the Barloworld sponsorship by the BFA follows the snub by former sponsors Orange Botswana and Banc ABC to extend their partnership after contracts elapsed.
“The agreement between the BFA and Barloworld was for Butler to use the vehicle for the period of his contract which has since expired. When Butler’s contract expired in March, the motoring company extended their assistance for two months when he (Butler) was given a short extension as he would have been handicapped if they took the car while he was still executing his duties,” said the source.
The source further revealed that after confirmation of Butler’s final departure, Barloworld demanded the car back. It is said that attempts by the BFA to renegotiate the sponsorship failed to bear fruit, leading to a negotiated price for the BFA to purchase the car.
In an interview with BFA mouthpiece, Tumo Mpatane confirmed that indeed they are no longer in partnership with Barloworld.
He said despite the withdrawal they parted amicably and were offered to purchase the vehicle with a reasonable discounted price that suited the BFA coffers and currently driven by newly appointed Zebras coach Major David Bright.
“The vehicle sponsorship from Barloworld has elapsed and we kindly appreciate their support. We have since purchased the vehicle for the new national team coach to execute the association’s duties. Right now we are engaged in talks with a few potential sponsors to assist where the association is lacking,” said Mpatane.
He added that football is a model for marketing which companies should take advantage in by assisting in the development of local sports.
“We believe football has the potential mileage to push sponsors an extra mile and we are saying that companies should also play part in developing sports personalities. We are currently engaged in talks with a few sponsors and hope some will come on board to assist the association,” Mpatane told Sunday Standard.
However, efforts to reach Barloworld went futile maintaining they are on a busy schedule. Barlorworld Marketing officer Tuduetso Oletile declined to comment on the matter.
“We are not in a position to comment in the matter due to our busy schedule,” Oletile said curtly.
