The FCB Katswiri Under-20 Football League has received a significant boost after sponsors First Capital Bank (FCB) increased their sponsorship package to MK100 million, up from MK52 million last season.
The enhanced sponsorship will also see the league expand to 16 districts, an increase from the 14 districts covered in the previous edition, widening the talent identification base across the country.
FCB Head of Marketing and Communications, Twikale Chirwa, said the decision to double the sponsorship followed a proposal from the National Youth Football Association (NYFA), which introduced a revised league format aimed at improving player welfare and raising competition standards.
“We have launched this MK100 million league together with the Football Association of Malawi and the National Youth Football Association in response to the need to grow football at grassroots level. A lot of football talent in Malawi is discovered in rural areas, and these players eventually feed into the national teams and the elite league,” said Chirwa.
“As a bank, we felt it was important to increase both the sponsorship value and the number of districts involved to enable wider talent identification and development,” he added.
Receiving the sponsorship on behalf of the association, National Youth Football Association Chairperson Tiyenkhu Chavula thanked First Capital Bank for the increased investment.
“This support will allow us to improve prize money, provide uniforms for winners, and cover officiating costs. All this aligns directly with FAM’s Transforming the Game agenda,” said Chavula.
He further explained that the revised league format will strengthen talent identification pathways.
“Teams will first compete at district level, after which the best players will progress to division level. The top performers from each division will then advance to the national division. In addition, players from the winning teams will receive individual awards, which will further motivate young talent,” he said.
