AfricaPress-Tanzania: AS teams seek financial help before the resumption of football leagues in the country, the Tanzania Premier League Board (TPLB) has reiterated that it has no funds to assist or lend to the clubs.
Immediately after it was unveiled that there is a possibility for the leagues (Mainland Premier League, First Division League and Second Division League) to resume, various teams have come open to declare that they have no financial muscles to proceed unless they are assisted with a certain amount.
TPLB Chairman Stephen Mguto said that they hardly have money to either assist or lend to the clubs, which are facing financial crisis prior to the recommencement of the games.
“We too depend on sponsors like Vodacom, Azam TV and KCB. Whenever they give us the required amount, we distribute it to the clubs which is not enough to cater for all their needs. “In short, we do not have money even though we would like to help the affected clubs because we know the problems they are facing at the moment,” Mguto said.
He continued: “If we had money to assist them, why should we ignore them? For your information, until now, we have not paid referees and match officials of league games because the board has no money.”
Mguto narrated that his board already told the clubs to be smart and seek their own sponsors since the money dished out by league sponsors can hardly manage to cover all their expenses.
He then said TPLB and the Tanzania Football Federation (TFF) are working closely to see how the affected clubs can be assisted before the restart of the contest.
Early this week, Minister for Information, Culture, Arts and Sports Harrison Mwakyembe, urged the Tanzania Football Federation (TFF) to seek financial help from international football entities, prior to the possible resumption of various leagues.
“I have advised them (TFF) and the National Sports Council (NSC) to keenly look on the way forward on how to assist clubs, which are facing financial problems before the resumption of the leagues. “They should talk with big football governing bodies like FIFA, UEFA and CAF to seek their support as we plan to bring back our leagues, bearing in mind that the situation will be worse since the games will be played behind closed doors,” Mwakyembe said.
On April 24th this year, FIFA announced that they will release operational funds for 2019 and 2020 amounting to $150 million to its member associations as the first step of a relief plan to help negate the economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Each of FIFA’s 211 member associations would receive $500,000 in the coming days as well as any remaining entitlements for 2019 and 2020, it added.
The coronavirus outbreak has brought soccer to a standstill and clubs have struggled to cope with the loss of revenue.
“The pandemic has caused unprecedented challenges for the entire football community and, as the world governing body, it is FIFA’s duty to be there and support the ones that are facing acute needs,” FIFA President Gianni Infantino said.
Meanwhile, the Zanzibar Football Federation (ZFF) has urged TFF to remember giving them their share, when the funds set to be distributed by FIFA to its members globally arrives.
“We have already communicated with TFF to make sure that once they receive the amount, they should call us to be involved in its distribution,” said ZFF Information Officer Adam Natepe.
