By Sibusiso Masilela

Uproar!!!

MTN Premier league Clubs have cried foul over the hefty E45 000 participation fees deduction.

This comes after the Premier League of Eswatini’s decision to make the once off deduction from the E110 000 participation fees for some of the 16 teams.

The money will be used to cover the referees’ allowances for the current season.

A team official who preferred to be anonymous said the move has crippled them financially.

“We feel the organisation was not lenient on us with the once-off deduction, as we are still early in the season. We are no longer making enough money from gate collections due to the new sharing format, and it’s difficult to run clubs,” the official said.

Another official called for the review of the deduction format.

“The PLE should not deduct the money once off; instead, they can deduct in instalments so that we can be able to cover other expenses,” the official said.

PLE Chief Executive Officer Pat Vilakati said the deductions were statutory.

“The money which we deducted from clubs is mandatory, and we have been collecting it every season to cover some of the expenses to run the league.

Teams should plan to pay it upfront so that we can not deduct it from the participation fees. There are some clubs that paid the stipulated amount prior to, and their monies were not affected,” he said.

The current league sponsorship is currently at E22.5 million following the announcement of the new three-year sponsorship.