Mikia Kalati
MATEKANE Group of Companies (MGC) founder Sam Matekane has pledged yet another M300 000 towards the Premier League teams which were eliminated in the early stages of the MGC Soccer Spectacular.
The business mogul announced on Saturday during the closing ceremony of the MGC Sports Extravaganza in Mantšonyane that he would fork out more resources towards football sponsorship.
Matlama were crowned champions of the debut MGC Soccer Spectacular which also involved lower division teams Lilala FC and Mantšonyane United, who also pocketed a massive M100 000 in appearance fees each.
Meanwhile, Mamoroalo Tjoka, who hails from Thaba-Tseka and Jobo Khatoane won the Bocheletsane Half-Marathon in the female and male categories respectively and each pocketed M10 000.
Manqabang Tsibela also from Thaba-Tseka and Thebe Semoko were the winners of the 5km races to walk away with M5 000 each.
There were also categories of master and grand masters and winners in each category also pocketed M5 000.
MGC had forked out over M500 000 for soccer sponsorship and M316 000 towards the Bocheletsane Half-Marathon.
Initially, the six premier league teams that were eliminated in the early stages of the competition were set to share gate takings from matches played a fortnight ago.
However, Matekane indicated that he was told that the money made out of gate takings was not enough to sustain the six clubs and consulted with his company to increase their payouts.
The MGC boss said that each of the six teams will get M50 000 while the four teams that played in Mantšonyane at the weekend each pocketed M100 000.
“The tournament was a success and all that is left is for me is to pass my gratitude to everyone who contributed to this feat,” the MGC boss told the ceremony.
“I was not in the country during the early stages of the competition but I was informed that the gate collections shared by the other six teams were inadequate it’s then that we topped-up with M50 000 for each of those teams.
“Teams that made it to the finals in Mantšonyane will each still get M100 00 while the winning team will also got a trophy.
“From the bottom of my heart and on behalf of the company and my colleagues, I want to thank everyone who helped make this a success.
The business mogul also called for unity among Basotho and stated that the country can go places if there is harmony.
“Let us unite and work together, not just in sports. We can all see that our country is marred by instability but let’s see how we can face all the challenges together.
“If we work together, other businesses can also chip in with sponsorship for various sporting activities. However, if the country is unstable, then the business community will also suffer.
“We therefore plead with our leaders in the government to get things back on track. Our country is very small and when it’s stable, it has a lot of resources that can sustain it without depending on hand outs from other countries. We can all survive,” Matekane said.
Meanwhile, Premier League management Committee (PLMC) chairman, Ikarabele Sello, thanked MGC for its efforts to uplift local sports.
“The PLMC is very proud of the journey we have walked together with MGC. We had challenges at first but both parties sat down to work together.
“We know that MGC has supported various sports over the years and we are hopeful that the partnership will keep growing.
“Our goal is to have a lengthy partnership to improve the standards of the game in the country.
“The teams are grateful for the sponsorship of the Soccer Spectacular and we are all looking forward to more years of working together,” Sello said.
The event was also graced by LeFA president Salemane Phafane and Justice Tšeliso Monaphathi.
