Chris Theko
Linare football club officially unveiled Alliance Insurance Company as their new sponsor at a lavish event that took place on Tuesday it Hlotse, Leribe.
The deal fetches the Leribe-based team M1.74million and will run for three years.
The Leribe based side, had been without a sponsor after their contract with Lesotho National Insurance Group (LNIG)lapsed at the end of last season.
Speaking at the event Alliance Insurance Head of Marketing ‘Makeabetsoe Mabaleha said the company loves Lesotho and wants to see people happy hence their decision of investing in sports and soccer in particular as the most followed sport.
“We are a company that loves seeing people come together and have a good time, and we have noted that one of the things that promotes togetherness and happiness is soccer,” Mabaleha said.
Mabeleha said they are passionate about soccer in the country and they would like to see it grow to a professional state.
“Soccer has above all given our kids something to do with their lives, they are also able to eke out a living from it. As a company we saw it fitting that we invest in the sport because if we all remember it was once at its highest in the country, hence we aim to see it there again,”she said.
For the past ten years, Alliance Insurance has been actively promoting soccer in the country. It started sponsoring Matlama, Lioli as well as Lesotho Correctional Services, all of which have consistently made a top four finish over the past decade. Mabaleha said she wishes to see Linare following suite
“Without any pressure on you Linare, we are now part of you and our wish is to see you win the premier league. We say this proudly because we know where this club comes from,” she said.
She said the company wishes to see this as more of a partnership than anything.
“Our aim is to see this team as well as the others that we sponsor be able to stand on their own and be self-sustaining.
“For the duration of our partnership, we want to see you (Linare) flying at the top of the premier league, if you were mentioned in the top eight we want to see you being mentioned in the top three” Mabaleha said.
For his part, Linare President Refiloe Martins, thanked Alliance Insurance for choosing them over other clubs in the league.
“On behalf of the club we are proud, happy and highly grateful for this sponsorship by Alliance, they could have chosen any other team but they chose us. It has been a long time coming, we all know that the team has been working hard for many years hoping that a day like this would come and now we are very proud that it is here,” Martins said.
The president did not shy away from passing his vote of thanks to the past sponsors of the club who he said were with them through thick and thin.
He added that he hopes players were paying attention to the challenge thrown at them to bring back the glory days of Linare.
“I believe the players, technical team and the entire management heard the challenge that our sponsor has given to us. This club has been a sleeping giant for too long, it is now time to awaken that” he added.
2020 marks 90 years of Linare FC’s existence and its active participation in the top flight league since 1931 which it has won for three times in 1973, 1979 and 1980.
