Rayon Sports association has reached a five-year deal with StarTimes under which the Chinese firm will serve as the new sponsor of Rayon Sports Volleyball Club for US 40,000 (about Rwf30 million) a year.

According to Vedaste Kimenyi, the vice president of Rayon Sports association, StarTimes will provide jerseys for the team, while it will benefit through branding.

"We want to build a strong team. We will be inviting teams from outside Rwanda to play against our teams as we recently did in football. The plan is to elevate the level of our game in the various sports disciplines we are involved in," he said.

"Our players do not have to wait for the opportunity to play in continental championships to get international experience."

He added, "This sponsorship deal will help our team to be more competitive and also help us to get the players we want. We also want to use part of the money to nurture young talent across the country."

Rayon Sports association oversees both the Rayon Sports football club and the volleyball club. The association is also keen on forming teams in other field sports including cycling and basketball. 

Source: StarTimes

Proofread by John Devlin