MASERU — Lioli players will be smiling all the way to the bank tomorrow when they become the first footballers in the history of the game in Lesotho to receive salaries.
The players, who signed contracts this season, will be paid between M400 and M800 every month.
On top of that the Tse Nala players are each entitled to a winning bonus of M110 a match as well as M8 a day for transport.
Lioli public relations officer Moeketsi Pitso told the Lesotho Times they were hoping to pay the players more if the club’s financial situation improved.
“The salaries range between M400 and M800 because we are still struggling but we will get to a point where they can get more than this,” he said.
“The amount each player gets all depends on their performance and higher demand for their signatures.”
This is an historic development for football in Lesotho which is still played at amateur level with insignificant sponsorship and no television coverage.
Most teams in the Premier League are run on shoe-string budgets funded by well-wishers.
State-owned teams — Lesotho Mounted Police Service, Lesotho Defence Force and Lesotho Correctional Service — only facilitate employment for their players.
The Lesotho Football Association is working on an ambitious roadmap to turn the local game professional by 2014.
