A nice position for KPL to be in as they anticipate more sponsorship money

Super Sport Team

In November next year, the deal between the Kenyan Premier League and SuperSport International as the broadcast rights holders comes to an end.

If the South African company wish to carry on their association with KPL, they can do so. In fact, only someone offering more money than SuperSport currently are paying the league can apply.

It’s a nice position for the KPL to be in. The league is good value for TV people especially in the upcoming digital migration era. Having such sports content gives one an edge over competitors.

At the start of the 2008 season, SuperSport offered about $5 million [Sh425 million] in a four year deal. But in the third year of the contract SuperSport made an early call, renegotiating a five-year deal to cover 2011-2015.

After the signing, both sides were apparently happy. The then Chief Executive Officer, Imtiaz Patel, represented SuperSport and Elly Kalekwa, the KPL; after his club Sofapaka won the league title in 2009, he was league chairman in 2010.

At a ceremony in the New Stanley Hotel in Nairobi Patel said: “It was good deal. A good deal is one in which everyone thinks he has had the better of the other.” Kalekwa was jolly in  agreement.

They also agreed not to disclose to the media how much money was involved but KPL is owned by 16 clubs and the chairman of each knows about every cent of the company’s revenue. Therefore, the figure was common knowledge; a double of SuperSport’s initial payment, hence close to Sh900 million.

The Premier League is a prime project in Kenya for SuperSport and indeed the mother company Multichoice Group. The main difference between Multichoice/DStv pay TV packages in Kenya and its competitors is that Multichoice have the much-sought-after football content of both foreign and the Kenyan league.

Going by the trend, SuperSport may want to open new negotiations with KPL this year. In any case it is mandatory that they open talks six months before expiry of the current contract.

Therefore the man who would then be leading KPL is their chairman, Ambrose Rachier, boss of current champions Gor Mahia. How interesting.

In SuperSport, all matters such as this are handled by a man, specialising in litigation and commercial law, a hard ball player, Brandon Foot. And as fate will have it Foot assumed an acting CEO position at SuperSport after previous occupant Happy Ntshingila left last October. Patel is now CEO of the Multichoice Group.

Rachier’s law firm will not necessary hold brief for the KPL but as chairman and lead negotiator of the league it is on record that the soccer boss has achieved in-depth expertise in civil and criminal litigation and his skill in conveyance, commercial and corporate law will stand the league well.