Sportswire has been informed that an official announcement of Betway taking over as the title sponsor of the PSL is expected in the coming days.

Betway will replace DStv, which has held the title sponsorship since September 2020, succeeding ABSA. When DStv assumed the role, the PSL emphasized the continuation of a strong partnership and highlighted the league’s growth into a global top-10 following the 2007 broadcast rights deal.

However, DStv has faced financial challenges in recent years, including a significant subscriber loss due to increased competition from streaming services. Parent company MultiChoice reported record losses in both the 2022/2023 and 2023/2024 financial years (R4.15 billion in its 2023/2024 financial year, R2.92 billion in the previous financial year), resulting in technical insolvency.

Despite signing a five-year deal with the PSL four years ago, DStv’s future involvement in the DStv Diski Challenge remains uncertain. This reserve league was jointly initiated by DStv and the PSL in 2014.

Meanwhile, MultiChoice is navigating a complex situation with Canal+, which increased its stake in the company to over 35% earlier this year, triggering a mandatory offer to buy the remaining shares. The outcome of this process is unclear.

Amidst these uncertainties, the PSL has instructed clubs to temporarily hold on the DStv Premiership logo from their kits. The league is working to finalize a new logo and will provide updates on the matter.

As a result of these developments, the start of the new season, which is set to be renamed as the Betway Premiership, has been delayed.

Betway’s sponsorship of the PSL is not unexpected, as their current deal with SA Rugby is set to expire next month. The company has been an associate sponsor of the Springboks since August 2021. Betway logo has been appearing in the Rugby World Cup champions team’s shorts as it was against Portugal on Saturday, and it is not clear whether the two parties will continue in this partnership or not.