The Zimbabwe Football Association (ZIFA) has signed a $100 million dollars deal with Bangladeshi agency Total Sports Marketing relating to the planned Robert Mugabe Intercontinental football tournament, according to reports from the southern Africa country.
TSM has picked up the sponsorship, marketing and broadcast rights for the tournament, which is mooted to take place between June and July this year.
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The initial deal is for US$40 million, which will remain in place if the tournament goes ahead with eight teams – four from Africa and four from Asia – and will rise to the full potential US$100 million if the tournament expands to 16 teams, with eight apiece from the African and Asian confederations.
The deal will see the Robert Mugabe Intercontinental championship held annually for eight years, until 2023.
Both Fifa and Caf, the global and African governing bodies for soccer respectively, have agreed to give official recognition to the tournament which, according to the TSM agreement, will be more lucrative in terms of sponsorship and prize money than Caf’s own Africa Cup of Nations continental competition.
Zimbabwe has been expelled from qualification for the next Fifa World Cup in Russia, following Zifa’s non-payment of debt to former coach José Claudinei Georgini.
