MTC returns to rugby after 12 years 

MTC yesterday announced a sponsorship of N$700 000 to the Namibia Rugby Union (NRU) for a new 15-man regional competition to be staged early next year. 

It is the first time in 12 years that MTC is sponsoring rugby again after their previous sponsorship ended amidst financial mismanagement within the NRU in 2012, following the resignation en masse of its executive committee after the 2011 Rugby World Cup in New Zealand.

Then, MTC’s annual sponsorship had amounted to N$2,5 million, with N$1,7 million going towards the local leagues and N$800 000 to the national team, but even without their financial support in the ensuing years, Namibian rugby still managed to uphold its proud record of qualifying for the Rugby World Cup. They once again qualified for the 2015, 2019 and 2023 world cups and now with the 2027 World Cup qualifiers around the corner, MTC has once again stepped on board.

“We are looking forward to an exciting tournament and we are inviting all rugby lovers to come and support the players so that they can realize their dreams,” Tim Ekandjo of MTC said at yesterday’s press conference.

“We are looking forward to building a long-lasting partnership with the NRU, maybe through other avenues as well like with the national team, or the Premier League, which I know does not have a sponsor at the moment,” he added.

Christi Windvogel of the NRU said the sponsorship will assist them in their preparations towards qualifying for the 2027 Rugby World Cup. 

“It’s an honour for us to partner with MTC, a long standing supporter of Namibian sport. This sponsorship will enable us to elevate the senior men’s regional 15s competition as an integral part of our World Cup qualification campaign. This tournament provides a crucial platform to assess and develop our players while building momentum for the Africa Cup next year,” he said.  

John Heynes CEO of the NRU said four regional teams will compete in the tournament over three weekends from 22 February to 8 March 2025.

One region will consist of players from Kudus and Dolphins at the coast and Grootfontein in the north; a second will be made up of players from Wanderers, Western Suburbs and Reho Falcon; and a third will be made up of players from Unam, United and Rehoboth. 

The fourth team that will compete will be the national u20 team, which will also use the competition as preparation for the 2025 u20 Africa Barthes Cup. 

Heynes said the objective was to make sure tha`t they are prepared well for a crucial year for Namibian rugby in 2025. 

“We’ve got the Wortld Cup qualifiers coming up, so that gives us a huge opportunity to give our local players an opportunity to prepare at an early stage and also to make sure that we rebuild and rekindle the relationship with local partners and that’s why this partnership is so important for us,” he said.

“This competition will keep on growing because the original plan was to launch this competition with six regional teams but we also know that we have to take baby steps, and grow the process, to make sure that we dont dilute the quality of players,” he added. 

Heynes said the competition will have no prize money, with all of the funds going into administrative costs. 

“The money will mainly be used for transportation and accommodation and will include daily meals for the players and match officials. There won’t be any prize money and the only component that will be paid will be the match officials,” he said.