The president of the Ghana Football Association (GFA), Kwesi Nyantakyi, has disclosed that the association is hunting for a new headline sponsor for the Ghana Premier League following a request made last year by current sponsor, First Capital Plus Bank (now Capital Bank), to suspend its five-year contract.
According to Mr Nyantakyi, although the decision of the bank to suspend the contract is in contravention of the $ 10 million agreement with the FA, his outfit is already planning for life after Capital Bank.
“Even without invoking our rights under the contract we are also looking for sponsors for the Premier League,” Nyantakyi explained last Thursday during an interaction with journalists at the GFA Secretariat in Accra.
He continued, “We are looking for sponsors, who could be a replacement for Capital Bank or an addition to Capital Bank as the case may be depending on the outcome of our engagement with Capital Bank.
“We are looking for more sponsors to come on board, whether Capital Bank is a sponsor today or not, the FA still has the right to look for additional sponsors.
“The only category of sponsor that you can’t bring on board is another bank but you can bring an insurance company, you can bring an airline, you can bring a motor company, you can bring a radio station or whatever.
“Now, if Capital Bank leaves the scene, then it opens the chance for a bank to come on board as an additional sponsor. As we speak, we have only Capital Bank who are on the verge of leaving us,” he emphasised.
In spite of the GFA’s seeming readiness to grant Capital Bank an exit from the contract, Nyantakyi hinted that his outfit would head for the law courts to seek remedies if they went ahead to cancel the contract.
He said, “We pointed out clearly to them at a meeting that it is in clear contravention of the letter and spirit of the agreement we have with them.
“We do not see anywhere in that contract where a suspension can be invoked to either put the league in abeyance or bring it to an end or suspend it temporarily or otherwise.
“The request for a suspension of the league sponsorship is clearly alien to the contract, we have made it clear and our lawyers are reviewing the situation and will at the right time give us the advice and then we will take the right steps at the right time,” Nyantakyi contended.
Source: Graphic