Africa-Press – Eswatini. CONTRARY to laid down rules, capital city giants Mbabane Swallows and Highlanders want 80 per cent of gate-takings from the Ingwenyama Cup semi-finals.
The games will be played on Sunday during a double header at Somhlolo National Stadium.
The two teams are said to have submitted a letter to the Premier League Eswatini (PLE), requesting a higher percentage of the gate collections, above what will be received by the security forces teams, Green Mamba and Young Buffaloes.
In their first letter, the Mbabane giants had wished for the disentanglement of the derbies, requesting that the matches be played on separate days. However, the Ingwenyama Cup Management Committee (MC) and PLE rejected the request.
According to a source close to the matter, Swallows and Highlanders submitted another letter yesterday, citing what they called unfairness, as they claimed they had more fans than the security forces teams.
“We feel this is not fair for us as our fans will contribute more than the security forces. Buffaloes and Green Mamba must at least get 20 per cent from the gate collections.
Lower
“Besides having a lower number of fans, the forces teams fully benefit from government funds than us, who have to fork out money from our pockets for players’ salaries,” revealed the source.
He said both teams felt that equal sharing was depriving them of their deserved income because the other clubs do not attract enough fans to the stadiums.
The old rivals are in one accord, as they want a bigger share. However, they will clash in this dream semi-final, with Swallows chasing their fourth title after winning it three consecutive times.
Highlanders want their first title after being in the finals for a couple of times. On the other hand, Buffaloes and Green Mamba are chasing their second glory after winning in 2019 and 2020, respectively.
The sixth edition of the tournament, which fuses soccer and culture, carries a E1.4 million championship prize.
Highlanders Public Relations Officer (PRO) Kenneth Dlamini could not be drawn for comment as his cellphone repeatedly rang unanswered. Meanwhile, Swallows PRO Knowledge Ngwenya referred all queries pertaining this issue to the PLE. “I cannot comment much on this issue at this stage. It is there, but please contact the PLE for details,” he said.
Efforts to get an official comment from PLE Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Kenneth Makhanya proved futile as his cell number was not available on the network.
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