Innobuild Investment comes in to replace Mzuzu Coffee Company Limited which withdrew its sponsorship of the Mzuzu and District Football League some three years ago, thereby leaving businessman Bishop Abraham Simama as the only sole sponsor of the region’s major league.

According to NRFA’s General Secretary Masiya Nyasulu, the Mzuzu and District Football League will be run correspondingly with the elite league.

“We are excited as an association to have finally secured this sponsorship considering we were the only regional association without a lower league for district and other teams,” Nyasulu said.

For the past three years, since 2016, the Northern region has been the only region without a lower section for smaller teams after Mzuzu Coffee pulled out of the Mzuzu and Districts Football League, citing financial constraints.

However, a new lease of life is set to start for the small teams as Innobuild Investment, another Malawian-owned business venture, has come to their rescue with a 2 million Kwacha sponsorship package.

Nyasulu, told Zodiak online that the company has expressed the desire for a long-term deal, but that will depend on how authorities will run the first year of the new deal.

“In our discussions with the sponsors, they showed interest to be with us for quite a long time but the 1 year package is more of a pilot phase. If we fail to run this league properly then they will go, which means it’s up to us as an association to safeguard the sponsorship by running it in a professional way,” Nyasulu said.

Sixteen teams, some from within the city of Mzuzu and others from areas such as Ekwendeni in Mzimba, Mpherembe and Bwengu in Rumphi are expected to compete in the new league.

Both the Simama and Sons Northern Region Football League and the Innobuild Investemnt Mzuzu and District Football League are expected to commence during the first week of April.