Huge boost for NSL

By ISAAC LIRI
PAPUA New Guinea’s top domestic soccer competition will now be called the Kumul Petroleum National Soccer League following a platinum sponsorship worth K3 million yesterday in Port Moresby.
The semi-professional league was without a naming rights sponsor after Telikom PNG pulled out from sponsoring the competition two years ago.
KPHL managing director Wapu Sonk said the two-year (2019-2020) sponsorship deal would see the NSL get K1m this season and K2m next year.
The sponsorship also sees KPHL take on the naming rights for the grand final trophy which will be known as the Kumul Petroleum Cup.
Sonk said this was one of their biggest sponsorships in sports apart from their support for the PNG Hunters (rugby league) and they planned on supporting soccer from next year.
“With this sponsorship, we hope that soccer can lift to the next level and also reach out to all corners of the country,” Sonk said. “We are proud to be partners with the PNG Football Association to promote soccer in the country and this is our biggest sponsorship in the sport.”
PNGFA president John Kapi Natto described the forging of the new partnership as a transformational one for soccer.
“I see KPHL coming into sports as something good. I see them involved in rugby league and now coming on board to support soccer,” Kapi Natto said.
“Soccer is a global game played across 211 nations in the world and with KPHL coming on board, we want to see semi-professional football not only played in core places like Port Moresby, Lae and Madang but in other areas as well.” Kapi Natto assured KPHL that with the sponsorship they would ensure that football spread all across the four regions of the country and for the NSL to eventually transform its status from a semi-professional competition to a professional competition.
“Fifa wants every member country to have a professional competition and through that we will see our players go out and play professional football, we market our players” Kapi Natto said.
“With this partnership with KPHL, I see that we can make a difference, and as long as I am PNGFA president, I will make sure that we take as many of our young footballers abroad to play professional football. We have some of our players like Alwin Komolong playing in Germany and Tommy Semmy playing in New Zealand but we need more players going out.”
Kapi Natto added that an expression of interest for prospective Women’s National Soccer League teams was going out and the support from KPHL would also be aligned with developing the women’s game.
“Fifa highly regards women’s football all across the world and the women’s NSL matches will be curtain raisers to the men’s fixtures when they start in February,” Kapi Natto said.
“But for the time being, the women’s NSL will only be played in Lae and Port Moresby.”