Robert Arrigo has renewed his appeal for the business sector to increase its support in Maltese sport.
“Like I said last year, I hope that more companies take advantage of the tax rebate schemes by sponsoring a recognised sports club,” Arrigo told reporters yesterday before handing out sponsorship cheques to representatives of around 17 sports entities, including the Life Cycle Challenge which will take place in Australia this year.
“We want to lead by example... our company (Robert Arrigo and Sons Ltd) can help sports and we’re doing it.”
Arrigo also called on MEPA to speed up the process when sports clubs apply for permits, noting that “they are not there to make money but to promote sport in the community”.
As in previous years, the largest portion of the sponsorship outlay was allocated to Sliema Wanderers FC.
The Blues are still very close to Arrigo’s heart after the Nationalist MP guided them to several honours during his long tenure as club president.
Besides Sliema, other football organisations, namely Melita, Gżira United, Msida St Joseph, Msida Red Stars, Għargħur, Pembroke Athleta and Swieqi United, are being financially assisted by Arrigo’s company.
The list also includes Athleta, the reigning basketball champions, the Stompers rugby team, Gżira Bocci Club plus waterpolo teams who benefit from financial contributions along the season.
Handball player Chantelle Borg, who plays for Kavallieri and is a member of the national Under-18 squad, also received a much-needed boost from Arrigo.
“I started playing handball two years ago,” Borg said.
“Recently, the U-18 national team took part in a tournament in Teramo where we stayed for nine days.
“We had to pay for our travelling expenses. My family did their best to help but they couldn’t because we are passing through a difficult moment.
“My stipends were not enough to fund the trip, so I had to borrow money from my aunt. When I told all about this to Mr Arrigo, he offered to help.”
Arrigo’s company is also giving a donation to help a woman who needs to buy a new wheelchair, which costs around €11,000, for her disabled son.
All sports officials who attended yesterday’s presentation conveyed their gratitude to Arrigo.
“On behalf of my club, I want to thank Robert Arrigo for his assistance,” Keith Perry, the cur-rent president of Sliema Wanderers FC, said.
“We have benefited a lot from his generosity throughout the years.
“When he stepped down as president of Sliema Wanderers FC, he left the club in a strong financial position. After that, he remained as main sponsor of the team.”
Tyrone Demanuele, the secretary of Division Two champions Gżira United, said Arrigo’s help was not only financial.
“This is the fifth year running that Mr Arrigo has been directly involved in our club as one of our principal sponsors,” Demanuele said.
“The costs to run a club are very high. Without the help of people like him we would find it difficult to attract players of a certain level.
“The financial well-being of the club is important for us. Even if we won the Division Two championship last season, we managed to post a plus in our revenue.
“Mr Arrigo’s support of our club is not only financial, he also assists us in other important matters.”
Home-grown talent
Vincent A. Galea, the vice-president of Għargħur FC, said they are placing greater emphasis on home-grown talent after their failure to win promotion to Division One last season.
“We were aspiring to play in Division One but this failed to materialise for reasons beyond the control of the committee,” Galea said.
“We realised that some of the players were only there for the salary and not to help the team’s cause, so we sacked the whole team for the last few games last season and fielded amateur players only.”
During yesterday’s activity in St Julian’s, Athleta official Edmund Farrugia presented Arrigo with a plaque commemorating the basketball club’s 50th anniversary.