Inaugural Hong Kong Premier League Puts $150,000 Up For Grabs, Secures Title Sponsor

The inaugural Hong Kong Premier League will put a "hefty" HK$1.2M ($150,000) in prize money "up for grabs by its nine teams, with the champions taking home almost half a million dollars," according to Chan Kin-wa of the SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST. The figure is "four times more than that on offer last season in the final edition of the First Division, where champions Kitchee collected the winning purse" of HK$300,000. No other teams "received any cash award." In the new league, all teams get to "share in the pot," with the champions receiving HK$480,000 ($62,000) and HK$216,000 ($28,000) for the runners-up. Even the team "finishing last can earn" HK$24,000 ($3,100). The new league has "also secured a title sponsor in BOCG Life, a subsidiary of a prominent bank." The Hong Kong FA has signed a "one-year contract with the company, but terms were not disclosed." A "solidarity fund" with HK$500,000 ($64,500) will "also be set up to help clubs that need additional financial support" (SCMP, 8/21).