By Leemisa Thuseho
Naledi Funeral Planners says it feels betrayed by Bantu FC after the club secured a M6.3 million principal sponsorship deal with SpinCity while Naledi was still considering a proposed M4.452 million upgrade to its existing agreement.
The club unveiled its SpinCity agreement on 3 October, following the departure of previous principal sponsor Metropolitan at the end of last season. Naledi, already a sponsor of Bantu, says it had taken the club’s proposal seriously and submitted it for board approval, without rejecting or abandoning it.
In a letter dated 24 September seen by the Lesotho Times, Naledi acting managing director Tšolo Seutloali expressed disappointment with the manner and timing of the decision. While acknowledging Bantu’s right to pursue other commercial opportunities, the company argued that it should have received advance notification while its own proposal was progressing through governance procedures.
The disagreement comes against an established sponsorship relationship. Last year the two parties renewed a three-year agreement worth M2.16 million, up from a previous M1.8 million arrangement signed in 2022. Following Metropolitan’s departure, Bantu asked Naledi to consider becoming its principal sponsor.
Bantu vice-president for administration and marketing Khotso Mosito rejected suggestions that the club acted in bad faith. He said the club approached Naledi first out of respect for its existing support, but this was not a contractual obligation. Bantu needed urgent funding ahead of the league season and could not wait indefinitely for board approval.
Mosito said discussions began in early July, with the club subsequently following up while Naledi’s executives awaited their board’s decision. By the time Bantu finalised the SpinCity arrangement, he said, it had not received formal confirmation that Naledi’s upgraded sponsorship would be approved.
He said he wrote to Naledi on 23 September to inform it that the club had secured a principal sponsor. Bantu, as a community team, depends heavily on commercial backing to meet its operating costs, he explained.
Despite the disagreement, Mosito maintained that relations with Naledi remained cordial. The company continues to support Bantu under the existing agreement, and the club is willing to meet Naledi to discuss and clarify the negotiations.
Featured image: File photograph of a previous Bantu–Naledi sponsorship arrangement (2022), from the Lesotho Times media library; not the October 2026 SpinCity announcement.
