FDH Bank lifts suspension of Malawi league sponsorship

Malawi’s FDH Bank has lifted the suspension of its sponsorship of the country’s elite league. In a statement issued on Monday, 4 May 2026, the commercial bank confirmed the decision, a week after announcing the suspension of the financial support for the FDH Premiership, the Malawi national football team and the Malawi netball team.

“FDH Bank Plc is pleased to announce the lifting of the temporary suspension of all sports sponsorships, following a series of constructive engagements with Super League of Malawi (SULOM) and other key stakeholders,” reads the statement.

“These engagements provided an opportunity to reflect, realign, and reaffirm the fundamental principles that will guide the partnership going forward.

Fixtures to continue as scheduled pic.twitter.com/i4RDBTUXB5

— Super League of Malawi (@SulomMW) April 26, 2026

“The resumption of our sponsorships reinforces our long-standing commitment to the people of Malawi in supporting the growth of sports in the country. We recognise the significant role that sports continue to play in the country.”

What triggered the suspension of the league sponsorship in Malawi?

On 26 April 2026, FDH Bank suspended all sports sponsorships, a day after the 2026-2027 FDH Premiership official opening game between Mighty Wanderers and Karonga United failed to take place.

The game was not played due to a disagreement between the Football Association of Malawi (FAM) and SULOM over the latter’s choice of Kamuzu Stadium in Blantyre for the official match, even though the facility was not certified fit to host elite games. FAM maintains that the stadium failed to meet Club Licensing requirements.

In a formal statement, FDH Bank explained that the feud has tainted its brand image, hence the decision to withhold sponsorship.

Earlier, FAM had stopped SULOM from scheduling the FDH Premiership match at the stadium because it is not certified to host games.

On 14 April, FAM announced that the historic Blantyre-based venue had not met Club Licensing requirements for hosting matches. The association stated that the stadium owners had not addressed specific concerns ahead of the new season.

However, before that announcement, SULOM had already released fixtures for the entire season—running from April 25, 2026, to February 2027—with some games involving Blantyre-based Wanderers, FCB Big Bullets, and Ekhaya FC scheduled for Kamuzu Stadium.

In view of this, SULOM stuck to the fixtures, indicating that Wanderers would host Karonga United at the same 18,000-seater facility. The capacity of the stadium was reduced from around 45,000 over 15 years ago due to its dilapidated state.