Dr. Bortey reveals readiness to make Happy Man Bitters sponsor the GPL

Dr Emmanuel Borketey Bortey, Chief Executive Officer of Charger Limited the producers of Happy Man Bitters has disclosed his firm is still hatching plans of sponsoring the Ghana Premier League.

According to the multiple-award-winning Chief Executive Officer, his outfit ventured into football with the sponsoring of Aduana Stars, Berekum Chelsea and other lower-tier sides as they tested the viability of investing in the nation’s most loved sport.

But their ultimate aim of sponsoring the country’s top-flight was scuppered by the airing of the Anas exposè – a documentary about corruption in football.

He made these revelations in an interview with Accra-based media outlet Eclipse Broadcasting Network on Friday:

“Before the Anas exposè, Happy Man Bitters as a brand, we had a management meeting to sponsor the Ghana premier league,”

“But we said, let’s start with some clubs, so we sponsored the National Circles Council of Asante Kotoko, Aduana Stars, Berekum Chelsea. We also sponsored local teams across the regions, which included Upper East, Kasana Nankana Football club,”

He hopes Kasana Nankana will eventually qualify to the top-flight in the foreseeable future and replicate the feat attained by Aduana Stars, where they won the Ghana Premier League in their maiden season.

“They [Kasana Nankana] are doing well and I know a year or two, they will come to Ghana Premier League and win the Ghana Premiership title, that is where I will derive my joy.”

Although, the plan for sponsoring half of the clubs in the Ghana Premier League is yet to materialize, Dr Bortey opines the current GFA administration are on the right track.

“We were thinking of sponsoring half of the Premiership club before we sponsor the entire Premiership but it couldn’t happen,”

“When the new FA was set up and the Normalization Committee handed the affairs of football to them, we realized they were on course which we were happy as a brand, we are happy about it. Unfortunately, out of a blue, the Coronavirus came in.

He reiterated Happy Man Bitters’ willingness to sponsor the league on a long-term basis.

“Yes we plan to sponsor the GPL but we haven’t yet come to finality on the decision, management have not really come out, it’s still on deliberation. So I don’t want to say anything about it now, but it’s our wish. Once we planned to do it, we can do it,” he stressed.

“But we try to see the avenues and modalities we can use to enter because, the brand Happy Man bitters, we don’t want to enter into a sponsorship or a project and do it a year or two and leave it, no that’s not our brand,” he added.

“We have this Happy Man Inter communities Gala which has been in existence for the past six years [2014 to 2019]. Last year we had an awesome finals where the likes of the current coach for Black Stars, coach CK Annokor, Hamza Mohammed, Meadeama coach, Samuel Boadu graced the finals and I was happy they were able to unearth some talents.”