Sankoyo Bush Bucks has finally secured a three-year sponsorship deal with none other than tourism operator, Okavango Wilderness Safaris (OWS) at a tune of P750 000. Wilderness Safaris is not new to Sankoyo affairs, as it has assisted the team in the past when it struggled to honour fixtures.
The sponsorship comes at a time when Ngurungu is fighting to survive relegation from the Debswana First Division Northern League. The club is currently four points away from the red zone and should it lose their two remaining games, its dream for survival will be shattered.
The three-year sponsorship deal means Sankoyo will get P250 000 per season inclusive of other in kind support from the sponsor. For some years the team has been surviving through the help of Sankoyo Tshwaragano Management Trust (STMT) for them to be where they are today.
The club’s chairperson Itumeleng Kelebetseng said the donation marked the start of their preparation for the next season with him expressing confidence about their return to the premier league soon. Speaking during a recent press briefing, Kelebetseng said the sponsorship comes at a time when they are faced with financial challenges that affects the team’s performance
Kelebetseng revealed that though the money is not enough, they are however grateful and appreciative that it will go a long way in helping the club. He highlighted that Sankoyo’s expenses amount up to over P1 million per season covering travel, accommodation and feeding costs.
He has since called for other stakeholders to come on board and support the team indicating that their agreement with Wilderness does not hinder other potential investors to come on board. “As of now, Wilderness Safaris is our main sponsor, therefore we will give them such respect by putting their logo in the front of our kit,” he said.
For his part, OWS managing director, Kim Nixon said the sponsorship seeks to help Sankoyo back into the premier league. He revealed that the sponsorship amount may increase in future.
As part of the deal, Nixon revealed that players will also impart soccer skills to their beneficiaries of the Children in the Wilderness programme with the aim to develop future players.
“We have also agreed that Sankoyo players will be trained for free at our training center for hospitality programmes which will help create employment for players in the future when they retire from football,” he added.
Meanwhile, Ngurungu this past weekend continued with their fight to survive relegation by winning 1-0 against Rolling Guys through Kgakgamatso Juta who scored the only goal in the 43rd minutes to move the team four points away from the red zone. The club remains with two games (home and away) against Calendar Stars and Green Lovers.
