PLE NEEDS E11.5 MILLION FOR ESWATINI TV RIGHTS

MBABANE – It is no wonder the debate whether or not to finish the league is non-ending.

If the Eswatini Football Association (EFA) and its affiliate, the Premier League of Eswatini (PLE), resolve to finish the season, it will be very costly. The PLE needs approximately E11.5 million to purchase TV rights in order to broadcast live the remaining games of the season for top flight football. Highly-placed sources from the television station confided to this publication that for a live broadcast of a football, the station charged E80 000 per match. According to the sources, this is nothing compared to neighbouring South Africa where they charged at least E120 000 for broadcasting a single match.

“They might have changed the rates but the last I knew with us, it is around E80 000 per game but it is negotiable. In South Africa, it starts from E120 000 per game,” said a source.
When drawn for comment, Eswatini TV Senior Marketing Officer Siboniso Mawelela confirmed the figures. “Yes, we can work around that budget,” he said. This was after being asked if it was true that the live broadcast of a single game cost around E80 000.

Letter

However, Mawelela was quick to point out that his office had not yet received a letter of request for services of this nature from the office of the PLE. Consequently, he said he would not like to comment until they had received such a letter of request. However, the senior marketing officer divulged that a number of factors may be considered in the event they were required to provide this service. “It must be considered how many games are left to be broadcast, when are these games playing and the venues at which they are played – if the lighting is good,” he said.

Mawelela concurred that in South Africa it would cost even much more than E120 000 per match, stating that live broadcast of games involved other departments such as engineering.
Each team has eight games left which means a total of 112 games are left in the MTN Premier League and 31 games are to be played for the EswatiniBank Cup. This, therefore, means a total of 143 games will be played in top flight football if the decision is to re-start the season. A total of E8 960 000 will be needed by the PLE for TV rights of the elite league and E2 480 000 for broadcasting live the EswatiniBank Cup games. This money amounts to E11 440 000. PLE Chief Operations Officer (COO) Pat Vilakati said he could not comment on an issue which has not yet been decided. He said the decision whether games would proceed with fans or not, was not yet made.

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