betPawa Uganda has kicked off its partnership with the country’s growing indoor football game - futsal - by unveiling a new brand identity for participants of this sport. 

This takes place on the backdrop of the partnership signed in September with the country’s football governing body, the Federation of Uganda Football Associations (FUFA), which entails an umbrella sponsorship of three football properties, among them the futsal league. Under this new sponsorship deal, the betting brand becomes the title sponsor. 

betPawa’s Country Marketing Manager Ivy Igunduura said the partnership aims to broaden the vision for the growth of futsal in Uganda. This, she said, will be achieved by helping to amplify the Futsal Association of Uganda’s brand identity among players, coaches, club owners, fans and international organisations with an interest in the game. 

“As Uganda’s official football partner, our partnership with the federation is focused on creating equal opportunities for both the well established leagues and the nascent ones, hence our being here today to unveil our plans for futsal,” Igunduura said. 

“We want to work closely with the futsal community in Uganda, which includes fans and players, among others, to develop initiatives that promote the growth and development of this game in the country. One of the major positives from our engagement will be a direct benefit to the players through the betpawa Locker Room Bonus.” 

The betPawa Locker Room Bonus (LRB) is a mobile money payment given to players of the winning team who make the squad list per match. It is sent to their phones after every match they win and before they leave the stadium. Under the umbrella deal signed between betPawa and FUFA in September, 25% of the value of the UGX 1.18 Billion will go towards the betPawa Locker Room Bonus. All players picked for the match day squad will be paid UGX 150,000 each for every fixture their team wins during the season. 

Other benefits being introduced to the betPawa Futsal League include awards for most valuable player of the season, best goalkeeper, coach, player of the season, most assists, and young player of the season. During the partnership kick-off event held today, betPawa also gave kits to all 16 participating teams in the league. 

Hamzah Jjunju, President, Futsal Association of Uganda said: “It is truly an honour to have a big brand such as betPawa throw its weight behind a fairly new type of football here in Uganda and Africa; because most sponsors just want to go for the 11-a-side football played on the outdoor pitches since it is more established.”

Jjunju added that the support towards the betPawa Futsal League will have a positive ripple effect in terms of diversification of football talent, enriching the fan experience, development of infrastructure for the sport and an opportunity to catapult it to the global futsal stage.