Telekom Malaysia (TM) has returned as one of Malaysian league's sponsors, and will also broadcast matches this season.
BY ZULHILMI ZAINAL Follow on Twitter
Malaysian telecommunications firm Telekom Malaysia (TM) has returned as one of Malaysian league's sponsors, and it will also broadcast matches this season.
In an announcement jointly made by TM and competitions organiser Malaysian Football League (MFL) on Friday, it was revealed that the deal will take place for three years, beginning in the 2020 season. As part of the deal, TM will sponsor the Super League, Premier League, FA Cup and Challenge Cup, while they will be the title sponsor of the Malaysia Cup.
But more importantly, TM through its Unifi internet products and online television channels will also broadcast all Super League and Malaysia Cup matches, and selected FA Cup encounters beginning this season.
Gone are free match broadcasts by streaming service Iflix last season, with fans now needing to pay to watch the matches, unless they are already subscribed to its Ultimate Pack.
The contract signing event was held on Friday in Kuala Lumpur, involving acting MFL CEO Dato’ Ab Ghani Hassan and TM Multimedia CEO Moharmustaqeem Mohammed. Also present was MFL president Datuk Hamidin Amin, who is also the Malaysian FA (FAM) president.
The exact value of the deal was not revealed publicly, but according to veteran journalist Satwant Singh Dhaliwal, it is "in the region of RM30 million" (around USD7,250,000). He also wrote that public television channels and satellite television broadcaster Astro too may show a number of matches.
The signing of this deal has signalled the restoration of a previously broken partnership between the two entities. In 2019, midway through their previous deal, TM pulled out of the agreement, citing worsening financial health.
MFL, then led by president and JDT owner Tunku Ismail Sultan Ibrahim initially threatened to sue, but in the end decided against it. When Tunku Ismail and CEO Kevin Ramalingam stepped down from their posts towards the end of the year, Hamidin, who is rumoured to have a good working relationship with TM as FAM president and previously secretary-general, was appointed, a move that then paved the way for the two entities to mend ties and broker a new deal.
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Nak duduk di grandstand tonton UKM vs Selangor kena bayar tiket RM10. Nak percuma duduk saja di luar! Fans coming in at the grandstand for the UKM vs Selangor friendly on Wednesday were charged RM10, or they could simply watch from the outside for free! 😂
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