Leading online gaming firm SportPesa reaffirmed its dedication to fostering grassroots sports development by unveiling a groundbreaking 5 million sponsorship kitty for six local teams in Kasarani Constituency.
The announcement, accompanied by the presentation of brand-new home and away kits for the upcoming season, took place on Wednesday at the Muhuri Muchiri Grounds in Kasarani.
The six fortunate teams, namely Victors Faith FC, Mwiki United, Ruai United, Kasarani Football Club, Maji Mazuri FC, and the sole female team Ruai Starlets, emerged victorious among 43 competing teams, securing a season-changing sponsorship from SportPesa.
SportPesa CEO, Hon Ronald Karauri, expressed his enthusiasm for the grassroots initiative and emphasized the online gaming company longstanding commitment to supporting lower-tier teams. Speaking at the ceremony, Karauri outlined SportPesa’s desire to see these teams ascend through their respective leagues and ultimately become leading forces in Nairobi’s sports landscape.
“As SportPesa, we have always had a program of supporting grassroots football. Our aim is that this sponsorship will help these teams climb up their respective leagues and earn promotion to the next level. I want to see the respective teams from Kasarani going on to become the biggest in Nairobi,” stated Karauri, also the Member of Parliament for Kasarani.
The ceremony was attended by notable figures, including Sports Cabinet Secretary Ababu Namwamba, who commended SportPesa for setting a benchmark in the sporting sector and urged other corporates to follow suit.
Namwamba lauded the collaboration, saying, “The way to go is through the corporates chipping in the sporting sector, and SportPesa is showing it. I want to encourage the rest to follow what they are doing.”
Ruai Starlets captain, Mary Wangeci, expressed her gratitude, highlighting the significance of the sponsorship for the female team. “We thought as girls that we would be left behind, but I am thankful to SportPesa for giving us this sponsorship. We had serious challenges before, but now we are proud to own two sets of playing jerseys which will ease the burden on us.”
Kennedy Mugo, the Maaji Mazuri team manager, pledged to repay SportPesa’s faith, stating, “This sponsorship will help us to be competitive now because we have the motivation, and we are promising SportPesa that we will repay their faith by giving our best this season to get promoted.”
SportPesa’s involvement in grassroots football extends beyond Kasarani, with sponsorships for record Kenyan champions Gor Mahia, newly promoted Murang’a Seal, and the men’s national rugby 7s team Shujaa, further solidifying their commitment to the growth and development of Kenyan sports. Join SportPesa Kenya and play with them via their betting app today.