FAM hosts broadcasting rights conference

In its quest to commercialise local football, FAM will today hold a marketing and broadcasting rights conference at its Chiwembe Technical Centre in Limbe, Blantyre.

According to Football Association of Malawi (FAM) marketing head Dan Tambala, participants at the day-long conference will include broadcasters, sponsors, marketing agencies and the media.

The conference whose theme is: ‘Understanding football broadcasting and marketing rights’ includes presentations from broadcasters and sponsors.

Locally-based international broadcasting and marketing rights expert Felix Ngamanya-Sapao has hailed FAM for organising the conference.

“Elsewhere, broadcasting and marketing is the biggest source of revenue for football and it is commendable that FAM has realised that the issue was being diluted.

“It has been free-for-all as there has been no proper code of conduct and I am optimistic that the conference will map the way forward,” said Sapao.

He said Fifa statutes are clear that its members and the confederations are the original owners of all of the rights emanating from competitions and other events coming under their respective jurisdiction, without any restrictions as to content, time, place and law.

“These rights include, among others, every kind of financial rights, audiovisual and radio recording, reproduction and broadcasting rights, multimedia rights, marketing and promotional rights and incorporeal rights such as emblems and rights arising under copyright law,” said Sapao.

Over the years, Sapao has been engaged as a consultant to manage broadcasting and marketing rights by big institutions such as Fifa, CAF, Zimbabwe and Zambia football associations and one of Africa’s richest football teams TP Mazembe from DR Congo.