Msendami’s debut underlines Premier League’s growing influence

Regional countries are making a firm dip into the local market in search of national team players, a rarity not too long ago. Early footsteps can be traced back to the 1990s when Fabian Zulu, who did a gritty job for a formidable Notwane side, received a rare call-up to Zimbabwe’s Dream Team. It marked a positive, narrative-changing shift as the then Botswana Super League was hardly considered a fertile ground for national team imports. The pace of call-ups remained largely sluggish, with the region’s top talent preferring to trek to the more rewarding South African Premiership.

This left Botswana to continue to scrap for the crumbs. However, with Zimbabwe’s economy in decline, coupled with more money poured into the Botswana league, the tide shifted. The league’s worth soared in 2009 with a historic signing of a P24 million deal with telecommunications company, the Botswana Telecommunication Corporation (BTC). The first prize money for champions ballooned from a mere P120, 000 to P1 million, representing a vertiginous switch. The league was valued at P23 million per season in 2016 as quality players from the region kept pouring in, with BTC increasing its funding.