Botswana Meat Commission (BMC), which is currently sponsoring two Premier League teams, Lobatse-based BMC, and Francistown-based ECCO football team, is scheduled to pullout from sponsoring the two teams.
This was confirmed by BMC Public Relations Officer, Tiro Kganela. He said that the move was made as part of rationalizing and alignment of the new BMC.
As BMC pulls out from sponsorship, which was to the tune of P5 million annually, the two teams have been authorised to start negotiations of partnership with any interested parties.
The BMC will continue its sponsorship of sports codes such as darts, softball and net ball on a small budget .
Attempts to talk to coaches of both teams were futile as their cell phones were not answered.
Asked to comment on the development, sportswriter and analyst, Dikarabo Ramadubu, said that the news spells doom for the two teams as they were wholly financially dependent on the BMC.
“The announcement is sad news to both teams and the entire football fraternity in the country,” he said.
Another sports writer and analyst, who declined to be named, concurred with Ramadubu and said that, with the sponsorship of the BMC gone, the two teams will gradually see a decline in performance and they will not be able to keep players because of lack of finance and management as their management is composed of employees of the BMC.
On getting alternative sponsorship he said it was simply a non starter as they have a small support base. Last year, during a task team ordered to investigate the under performance of the BMC, some of those who appeared before the task team lamented the fact that BMC was spending a lot of money in sports but it was not mandated to do so.
