The Sunday Mail
Langton Nyakwenda
WHILE CAPS United were losing 0-1 against Black Rhinos in a friendly match at Motor Action Tuesday morning, the Harare giants were scoring in the boardroom at a Harare hotel.
Makepekepe received a major boost ahead of the Premier Soccer League cluster competition set to kick off next weekend when they clinched a US$30 000 sponsorship deal with a local beverage company, Coover Bottlers.
The company, which is owned by Zimbabwean entrepreneur Faraimose Kutadzaushe, will cater for CAPS United’s beverage needs for the next three years.
The value of the deal could be reviewed upwards depending on its success.
Apart from providing refreshments for CAPS United players and officials, Coover Bottlers will also supply warm-up kits and regalia.
“This is a partnership between Coover Bottlers and CAPS United; the idea behind this is that we as Coover Bottlers want to ensure that the players are well taken care of,” said Kutadzaushe.
The value of the sponsorship deal might increase to US$50 000 per season depending on its success.
“We will be working with CAPS United on various initiatives which are more social media-based so that we can engage with the supporters of CAPS United. We want CAPS United to succeed; to actually make sure the players are well catered for so they can ply their trade and they let us worry about how they are revitalised.”
CAPS United communications officer Raymond Gonte hopes the partnership will steer United to success.
“Over the years, CAPS United have been successful on the pitch, churning out a long list of football stars.
“CAPS United is undoubtedly a big club. One cannot talk of local football and omit CAPS United. But the said success has to be spurred on so that the great name of the Green Machine is carried on.
“In modern football that can be done by implementing and pushing for sport as a business.
“In 1999, CAPS United were the first team to turn professional and today through this partnership and more to come, let me emphasise: more partnerships are coming. We will be the first to implement the sport is business mantra,” said Gonte.
