THE national football league may have a sponsor before the new season starts next month. This comes after Bralirwa’s Marketing Manager Elvis Castanou confirmed that talks are ongoing between the company and the local football governing body, Ferwafa.

Bralirwa, through their Primus brand, sponsored the top flight league for last three season in a deal worth Rwf335m that also included putting some of that money in the second division league and sponsoring a pre-season tournament featuring the top 4 clubs.

That contract expired with the close of last season, and there were fears that the new campaign, which is scheduled to kick off on September 15, could go without a sponsor.

"We are talking with Ferwafa and hopefully a deal can be reached before the start of the new season,” said Castanou, without revealing much since the talks are only in the initial stages.

Unconfirmed reports suggest that Ferwafa is pushing for a five-year deal worth USD one million, which would be the biggest sponsorship ever in Rwanda’s sports.

The football governing body is also trying to bring on board other potential sponsors, among them, the Pan-African sports pay TV, Supersport.  The South African based pay TV is already in partnership with Rwanda’s neighbours Kenya and Uganda.

If Ferwafa manages to pull off the deals, it will go a long way in solving local clubs’ financial woes, which include incapacity to pay their players’ salaries on time.