This archive report was first published on 23 July 2020.
On July 23, 2020, Football Kenya Federation (FKF) President Nick Mwendwa announced that Nigerian betting firm BetKing would be the new title sponsor of the yet-to-be-launched FKFPL, replacing the Kenyan Premier League. However, a closer look at the deal reveals a complex web of interests and potential conflicts of interest.
At the center of the deal is Andrea Silva, who is not a sponsor of BetKing nor does he own the company. Instead, Silva is seeking to have FKF sign over the rights to his company, which would then approach potential sponsors to buy the rights at a fee. Silva would earn a 6% commission from this deal.
As Silva solicits for a rights buyer, he uses his own money as a guarantee for gullible and desperate FAs and clubs, who ultimately sign over their rights for a pittance. This explains why he insists that all clubs in the Kenyan Premier League must sign over their rights upfront, allowing him to hawk the rights to potential sponsors.
Andrea Silva's plan is not new. He first attempted to pull a similar deal with FKF under then-President Sam Nyamweya in 2015. However, when the clubs refused to sign, Nyamweya formed FKF PL and purportedly turned the then-NSL clubs into the FKF PL. The guaranteed funds were disbursed once, with the clubs receiving payment for just three months before the lucrative deal was called off.
When Andrea Silva realized that FKF could not cajole the KPL clubs, he stopped the contract. The same Andrea Silva tried to pull another deal between KPL and Radio Africa, which ended in a nasty court battle. Silva had demanded to be paid his commission despite the deal failing to take off.
Stakeholders will have to wait and see what is in the dotted lines to be assured it's not another pipe dream. The analogy is clear: not all that glitters is gold.
