Sulom raises gate charges
Super League of Malawi (Sulom) has raised gate charges for TNM Super League matches by at least 50 percent from this season.
The flagship league runners have also officially classified matches with games deemed as high-profile being rated A while others have been rated B and C.
A standard ticket for high-profile matches will be fetching K4 000, up from K3 000 while B-rated matches have been pegged at K3 000 from K2 000 and category C is at K2 000.
According to Sulom, A-rated matches involve the four top teams as per last season’s log standings and these are champions FCB Nyasa Bullets, runners-up Silver Strikers, third-placed Mighty Mukuru Wanderers and fourth-placed Chitipa United.
The games include the Blantyre derby, the most sought-after fixture on the domestic scene which pits age-old rivals Bullets and Wanderers.
Sulom general secretary Williams Banda said B-rated matches are those between A classified teams against those from position five to eight while C-rated matches involve those in the top eight against the rest.
Newly-elected Sulom president Colonel Gilbert Mittawa justified the hike, attributing it to the high cost of living and the 44 percent devaluation of the kwacha.
He said: “You may agree that there have been financial changes leading to devaluation and inflation.
“The clubs have been affected by these changes and this has prompted us to revise the gate charges.”
In an interview yesterday, Bullets chief administration officer Albert Chigoga welcomed the gate fee review.
He said: “Bullets support the idea unreservedly. We cannot continue to sell tickets at the same prices we used to before devaluation as it does not make any business sense.”
But a Blantyre-based Bullets fan Rodrick Walesi said while Sulom are justified to revise the gate charges, a 25 percent hike would have been understandable.
“It’s true things have gone up and clubs need money for their operations, but perhaps for now, Sulom should have effected a 25 percent increase and later on the other 25 percent because, as fans, we are struggling to raise money,” said the Manje Township resident.
However, Hastings Kamenya, a Mighty Mukuru Wanderers fan based in Kachere Township also in Blantyre, said the increase makes sense.
“They have only increased by K1 000 which is fair, considering that things have gone up and teams need money for their operations,” he said .
