NFA Cup returnsSponsor details pending NFA president Frans Mbidi says the football association is likely to launch the NFA Cup before the end of the year. Namibia Football Association president Frans Mbidi has hinted at the return of the NFA Cup after disclosing that the association finally has a sponsor for the tournament. The competition, which has in the past seen Namibia Premier League and division clubs challenge for the trophy, did not take place during the 2015/16 football season after NFA failed to secure a sponsor.
This was after the competition''s main sponsor, Bidvest Namibia, pulled out of its three-year, N$20 million sponsorship deal in 2015.
In an interview this week Mbidi said: “We have finally got a sponsor for the tournament.
“This is a Christmas present for football lovers and we are going to officially announce it at the beginning of December.
“As president of the association, I can now prematurely confirm that the NFA Cup will be back.
“It has been a difficult period for Namibian football due to all the financial problems, but there is finally good news to share with football lovers.”
The president would not disclose the name of their new partners or details of the sponsorship, saying they are yet to finalise legal documents.
The NFA Cup competition usually occurs during the premier league season.
However, the topflight league currently does not have a sponsor and it is only expected to start in February 2017.
“Yes, we do know the situation about the league and this could probably change the format of the NFA Cup,” Mbidi said.
“We might be forced to start the competition earlier than we usually do because of the situation the premier league is in.
“This will all be announced at the launch of the competition during December.
“There will be plenty of administration work to be done and I believe the staff are ready to do that.”
The NFA Cup has been in existence since 1990, but was not held in 1997, 2001, and 2012 and during the 2015/16 season because of sponsorship problems.
Tigers FC are the defending champions of the competition, while African Stars and Chief Santos are record holders, having won the competition on four occasions each.
Mbidi further announced that negotiations for the Standard Bank Super Cup have been put on hold until the league secures a sponsor.
The competition was played as a pre-season tournament between the NFA cup champions and the league champions.
However, the bank announced that it would not continue as the main sponsor of the competition after its three-year contract ended.
“We are also confident that the negotiations will resume between us and Standard Bank. But that will only take place when the league finally gets a sponsor.
“The positive we can draw from this is that we have enough time on our hands to actually plan and have better structures in place for that tournament,” Mbidi said.
JESSE JACKSON KAURAISA