Aston Villa’s new sponsorship agreement with Visit Rwanda has drawn criticism from human rights campaigners, with Amnesty International saying the deal risks helping the country polish its international image, BBC Sport reported.
Visit Rwanda and the Premier League club signed the multi-year deal on July 14, naming the tourism board as Aston Villa’s principal partner, official tourism partner and official coffee provider from the 2026/27 season. Media reports put the value at up to GBP20mn ($26mn) a year if performance bonuses are met, according to The Athletic and BBC Sport, which would make it the club’s most lucrative commercial agreement to date. The brand replaces Betano on the front of the men’s, women’s and academy shirts, following a Premier League decision to phase out gambling sponsorships on shirt fronts.
Amnesty International UK’s head of campaigns, Felix Jakens, said Rwanda was using the partnership to deflect attention from its human rights record. “It’s not new that Rwanda is using sportswashing to deflect attention from its terrible human rights record,” Jakens said in a statement to BBC Sport and the Press Association. He said the country was “prolific in arbitrary detention, torture and the repression of free speech” and was playing a role in the conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo through its support for the M23 rebel group and the actions of its military in eastern Congo.
“Rwanda’s sportswashing needs to be called out, and we’d like Aston Villa and the Premier League to play their part in this,” Jakens said, according to BBC Sport.
The Rwandan government has repeatedly denied backing rebel groups in Congo. Aston Villa’s president of business operations, Francesco Calvo, described the partnership as “a symbol of the club’s continuing expansion and growth into international markets.”
Rwanda’s tourism board also holds sponsorship agreements with Atletico Madrid, Paris Saint-Germain, the Los Angeles Clippers and the Los Angeles Rams. Its eight-year sleeve sponsorship with Arsenal ended last season following sustained criticism from fan groups, and Bayern Munich moved away from its own Visit Rwanda branding after similar pressure.