SportPesa to bail out “broke” Gor Mahia
Gaming firm SportPesa is set to bail out crisis-hit champions Gor Mahia, the company’s chief executive Ronald Karauri has said.
Karauri said they are concerned with the team’s recent below par performance, loosing two back-to-back league games to bottom-placed Thika United and fourth-placed Ulinzi Stars.
K’Ogalo players have boycotted training this month to protest unpaid August salary and eight-match winning bonuses that amount to Sh900,000.
OUT OF CASH
With a monthly wage bill of Sh5.5 million, Gor are said to have run out of cash with a month to the end of the season after exhausting their annual Sh66 million from their three year deal with SportPesa on continental expenditure.
The delay has prompted four players to request to leave the club at the end of the season.
The four, believed to be Captain Harun Shakava, defender Charles Momanyi, midfielder Francis Kahata and Humphrey Mieno, have their contracts ending in the next six months.
“We regret the delay in payment of August salaries but we request the players to bare with the situation and adhere to the contracts they’ve signed with the club as we tussle to rectify whatever has cost the delay,” Gor CEO Lordvick Aduda said.
SPONSORSHIP MONEY
SportPesa CEO, when contacted on Thursday said; “We haven’t gotten to the bottom of it (crisis), we will be meeting the clubs leadership next week but we are giving them some of the sponsorship money in advance to take care of whatever issues they have for now,” said Karauri adding.
“Actually it’s just some money that was due at the end of the month, but we will be sending it over to them immediately.”
Gor, who play English Premiership outfit Everton in a friendly match in November, visit Vihiga United in a league fixture Wednesday next week.