Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia – The establishment of the Football Malaysia Limited Liability Partnership (FMLLP) was officially set in stone following the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Football Association Malaysia (FAM) and international media rights company, MP & Silva.
At the ceremony held at the Ritz Carlton hotel, FAM was represented by its president, HRH Tengku Abdullah Sultan Ahmad Shah, while MP & Silva was represented by Beatrice Lee, Managing Director, Asia-Pacific and Daniele Capelletti, Head of Acquisitions. Witnessing the event was Dato’ Hamidin Hj Mohd. Amin, General Secretary of FAM as well as other representatives from FAM and MP & Silva.
The ceremony followed an announcement of the formation of FMLLP earlier this week, and that MP & Silva had pledged RM1.26 billion towards the partnership over the total 15-year period of the contract.
“We are truly positive about this new collaboration, and are therefore investing heavily into it. Although the amount pledged is RM1.26 billion, the actual amount of funds channelled towards this venture could very well surpass that figure,” said Beatrice Lee.
Stakeholders within the FMLLP will include FAM, as the Managing Partner, MP & Silva as a special partner (FAM’s global media and commercial advisor) and the respective football clubs as partners.
Football Malaysia LLP was created in the course of privatisation of the Malaysian football league system. The newly formed partnership will therefore oversee five entities in Malaysian football under its jurisdiction, which include Malaysia Super League, the Malaysia Premier League, the FA Cup, the Malaysia Cup and the Charity Shield.
It was earlier announced that FAM would benefit from 40 per cent of the total revenue of FMLLP, while the clubs will receive 30 per cent of the funds. Meanwhile, development of referees and youth will be allotted 10 per cent and the remaining 20 per cent will be channelled towards the running of the league.
“The formation of FMLLP is a historic milestone in Malaysian football. It is set to be a game changer in the administration and development of Malaysian football, one that will contribute towards the technical and commercial success of the sport here. Clubs too, stand to benefit with increased profitability,” said Tengku Abdullah.
Tengku Abdullah emphasised that the big picture holds much promise for Malaysian football and urged all parties involved to work together under this new structure in hope that by 2016, the league will be able to go fully independent.
Meanwhile, Beatrice Lee from MP & Silva – which also partners with the English Premier League (EPL), Bundesliga and the Serie A – added that FAM had indeed taken a step in the right direction, by forging this partnership.
“These are truly exciting times. What’s happening to the M-league now is the same thing that happened to major European football leagues in the early nineties, and we will be aiming to reap similar success for the M-league,” she said.
FMLLP’s new structure in Malaysian football will take immediate effect, and its administration will soon kick-off the 2015 football season with beginning with the Charity Shield which happened on 31 January, followed by the M-league and Super league on 6 and 7 February respectively.
