African Stars chairman Salomo Hei, confirmed yesterday that they have received their N$850 000 prize money for winning the Debmarine Namibia Premier League in April.
However, he was uncertain if there would be any further contributions from the Namibia Football Association (NFA) regarding the gold medals, as there was no prize-giving ceremony held.
Hei stated that this situation does not affect the club in any way.
He, however, did not respond to questions about whether Stars had settled their N$760 000 loan from the NFA for their Caf Championship participation last year.
The team was eliminated in the preliminary round after losing on away goals to Power Dynamos of Zambia.
As of February, this year, the NFA had managed to deduct close to N$631 000 from the grant money that Stars was supposed to receive for winning in the league.
On the other hand, Ongos FC’s football director Ricardo Mannetti confirmed that their club received the prize money for winning second place, amounting to N$420 000.
Khomas Nampol received N$300 000 for securing third place, while Unam received N$230 000 for finishing fourth.
However, league top goal scorer Awillo ‘Willy’ Stephanus shared that he has not received any award for his achievement.
He noted that this was also the case in the 2022/23 season. “They have not contacted me. I don’t know if they will contact me. I have not received any award. Even last season I didn’t get anything. So, basically, there is no incentive from the league to perform to your best ability,” said Stephanus.
In May this year, NFA league director Mabos Vries said that they could not host an awards ceremony due to budget constraints.
The event meant to recognise and honour players and technical staff encountered unexpected costs that were not included in the league’s budget, necessitating additional funding to host the event.
The awards ceremony is intended to acknowledge individual achievements, including the top goal-scorer, player of the season, defender of the season, coach of the season, and best referee of the season.
However, these awards have not been given to players, highlighting ongoing financial challenges.
Despite these issues, Debmarine has increased its sponsorship for the 2023/2024 Premier League season from N$13 million to N$18 million. From this fund, the winning clubs receive their prize money. Additionally, clubs are provided with grants, transport costs and official playing gear from this sponsorship, among other benefits.
-lmupetami@nepc.com.na