Sponsors not bitter about Amla not being here for the beer

Times Media

TELFORD VICE, Johannesburg

Will Hashim Amla’s teammates have to drink his share of the sponsor’s beer in future? That’s almost what Cricket SA (CSA) chief executive Haroon Lorgat seemed to suggest when Amla was unveiled as SA’s test captain on Tuesday.

Or perhaps not. “Castle (Lager), in particular, are very supportive (of Amla’s appointment),” Lorgat said. “We will meet the obligations of our commercial partners through other players.”

As a practising muslim, Amla neither drinks alcohol nor supports its promotion - which means he does not wear a beer logo on his playing shirt like most of SA’s players do.

As more muslims - Imran Tahir, Wayne Parnell and Farhaan Behardien - have and do feature in SA’s test or one-day squads, both of which are sponsored by Castle, the brand could get itself into a froth over whether CSA are putting their mouths where the money is.

Not so, it seems. At least, not yet. “As a sponsor, we have always been sensitive to and respected (Amla’s) beliefs which have precluded him from wearing the ... logo on his kit and we will continue to do so,” Castle Lager general manager Alastair Hewitt said.

“We believe it’s important to encourage the spirit of tolerance of each other’s diversity, one of the bedrocks of our democracy, where we are able to accommodate one another for the greater good despite having different departure points.

“Castle Lager has had 21 years of cricket sponsorship and is the team sponsor of the (SA test and one-day) teams, which is not dependent on any one individual, but is there to support the national cricketing team’s success and national pride.”

Not all South Africans share Hewitt’s inclusive sentiments.

In a Daily Maverick blog posted in March, 2012, Styli Charalambous wrote that, “Team management and sponsors set a dangerous precedent by allowing Amla to get away with this rebuttal of the team sponsor on the grounds of his religious beliefs.

“Wearing a Castle logo on his chest is no more of a violation of his religious beliefs than Riaad Moosa standing in a bar delivering comedic prose.

“There’s a marked difference in donning a team sponsor’s logo and being pictured getting inebriated on the said beverage. Wearing an alcoholic beverage’s logo doesn’t make you a drinker – as little as standing in a garage makes you a car or going to church makes you a christian.”

In June, 2011, David Brooke, a sport24 blogger, wrote under the headline “Why Amla won’t be captain” that “it all comes down to Castle Lager”. The sponsors “ ... want their national captain, when in a press conference which is beamed around the world to millions of people across various TV networks, to see their company logo”.

The assertion, long since denied by CSA, that Amla pays a fine for not wearing the logo is still reported without attribution or substantiation.

What Amla downs in lieu of alcohol at the SA team’s fines meetings is not known, but the trendy craft beer set - otherwise known as the ABC club - will think he is better off. ABC stands for Anything But Castle.