Rwanda National Volleyball Federation president Gustave Nkurunziza said over the weekend why five new teams were approved to compete in the national league, saying the main reason is to raise the competition level.

Nkurunziza, while addressing an extraordinary general assembly on Saturday at Amahoro National Stadium, said that more and competitive teams in the first division league will improve both the teams and individual players and ultimately help attract more fans and sponsors.

"Some of the new teams will have an edge over the other teams because they are owned by corporate companies. Take the example of Rwanda Energy Group (REG). Such institutions have resources and they want to advertise their brands, therefore having them in the league is good for the sport,” said Nkurunziza.

He added, "A club like Gisagara Volleyball Club (owned by Gisagara District) has resources to put in place the necessary infrastructure. Recently, they unveiled a new gymnasium with extra space and facilities to host major competitions.”

He also said a more competitive league will benefit the national teams. "With a competitive national championship, a variety of skilled and good players will be selected to play for the national teams at different levels,” he explained.

Nkurunziza added that plans are underway to work with the media so as to improve on the coverage of the sport and help raise its profile nationwide.

"The mainstream media have the power to grow volleyball”.

The approved men’s clubs include; Gisagara, University of Technology and Business Studies (UTB), and Rwanda Energy Group (REG), while the new team in women league is Tumba College of Technology.

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