German football club to shift away from ‘Visit Rwanda’ sponsorship after criticism from fans.Bayern Munich has signalled it will cut down on “Visit Rwanda” branding as it moves “away from a commercial sponsorship” with the African nation facing a backlash over alleged support for rebels in the neighbouring Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).Bayern dismissed allegations of “sportswashing” when it signed a five-year deal with Rwanda in 2023. It included advertisements in the stadium and what Bayern called events “to promote tourism and investment opportunities in Rwanda”.At the time, it replaced a sponsorship deal with Qatar. Rwanda has similar sponsorships with European football giants like Paris Saint-Germain, Arsenal and Atletico Madrid.Some Bayern fans displayed a large banner at a game in February protesting against the deal amid accusations from the United Nations that Rwanda has backed rebels in the DRC.Now the German football champions say they have reached a new deal with Rwanda that turns the existing sponsorship into a three-year agreement focusing on developing young football players at a Bayern-affiliated academy in the country.“In constructive talks about our future direction, we agreed that a very special part of our relationship with [the Rwanda Development Board (RDB)] was the developmental nature of our work in Kigali through the FC Bayern Academy,” Bayern Chief Executive Jan-Christian Dreesen said on Friday in a statemen …
