Up to 100 Kenyan employees have been laid off by South African based broadcaster SuperSport. The company is understood to have this month terminated the contracts of those attached to SuperSport, which offers sports content through DStv and Gotv.
The affected staff include presenters, technicians, camera crew, office cleaners, freelancers and sports analysts.
“It’s done,” said an employee who spoke to media but sought anonymity. “We have been laid off and time has come for us to explore new opportunities. To be honest we knew it was coming.”
SuperSport had earlier withdrawn their television support from Kenyan Premier League Limited, estimated to be worth Ksh300 million a year, and has since shut down all Kenyan football shows, due to incessant politics in the management of Kenyan football.
SuperSport’s legal advisor Phillip Seleke said they had withdrawn from the partnership because of a recent court ruling which declared that KPL wasn’t the bonafide “owners” of the top-flight football league.
KPL and FKF have had protracted battle over the running of the league and its composition which forced them (KPL) to go to the SDT in a bid to resolve the conflict.
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KPL chairman Ambrose Rachier and chief executive Jack Oguda described the mover as “shocking” and unfortunate.
The termination of the contract has thrown Kenyan football into a crisis, as the broadcaster had been a major revenue source to local football clubs that depended on the TV money for salaries for players.
Under the terms of the cancelled deal, SuperSport was to air between 80-100 games of the Kenyan Premier League per season. Nigeria, Ghana and Zimbabwe are other markets that have severely been affected by SuperSport’s restructuring.
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