Jamaica National Building Society (JNBS), through its JN Visa credit card product, will sponsor the Kingston and St Andrew Football Association (KSAFA) flagship Jackie Bell Knockout Competition 2016/17 for the sum of $4 million.

The sponsorship by Jamaica National through JN Visa will be for two years and has a 10 per cent increase attached to the 2017/2018 commitment.

The budget for this season’s JN Visa/Ksafa 2016/17 Jackie Bell Knockout competition is $4.4 million and has seen an increase of 23 per cent over last year’s budget of $3,592,000, amounting to just over $800,000.

Thirty-six teams drawn from among KSAFA Major League and Super League teams along with the seven Red Stripe Premier League teams will vie for the $2,975,000 package with the eventual winners pocketing the first prize of $400,000.

Second-place finishers will receive $250,000; third place $150,000, and fourth place $100,000.

This season’s competition will kick off on the weekend of Saturday, December 17, and Sunday, December 18, 2016, with the final scheduled to be played next April.

The Jackie Bell Knockout, entering its 28th renewal of competition that normally signals the start of the KSAFA season, will this year begin two weeks after the start of the Super and Major League competitions. This was pointed out as a deliberate attempt by the KSAFA Council to provide the non-Premier League teams with an opportunity to play at least two rounds of active competition.

KSAFA President, Ambassador AB Stewart Stephenson made the announcement at a press launch at JN Visa Head Offices in Kingston yesterday, and extended special thanks to JN General Manager Earl Jarrett and assistant general manager Leon Mitchell for their long-standing commitment to the KSAFA brand.

“We are, of course, extremely pleased that the society which has been providing sponsorship for KSAFA competitions for the past 20 years since 1996, is utilising our flagship knockout competition to brand one of its products supplied by the new JN Bank,” Ambassador Stephenson said.

With the new sponsorship deal offered by the JN Visa credit card product to participating KSAFA clubs, the infrastructure development payments to clubs of $12,000 will be made via JN Visa cards. And as a special facility, JN Bank will be extending credit of $38,000 to each approved designated club representative to be accessed only if the club so desires. This is to say that the clubs have a facility of drawing down the sum of $50,000. Notwithstanding, these funds have to be repaid by the deadline date on the credit card statement.

Associate sponsors for the past two seasons will again be Avis, which will contribute $400,000 to the budget. KSAFA ball sponsors Soccer Xpress will provide 25 balls valued at $100,000 for the quarter-finals, semi-finals and final matches, while the gear sponsors will be Locker Room Sports.

Ambassador Stephenson also welcomed Peak Bottling Company, a new rehydration sponsor to the KSAFA brand. With a $2-million sponsorship, Peak Bottling will provide pure water for all the teams in all KSAFA competitions including the Jackie Bell Knockout competition.