In a Facebook post, the outspoken prince said teams should settle all their debts first after acquiring sponsorship.

“As Royal Patron of the Professional Footballers Association of Malaysia, I know how many players haven’t received their salaries and which teams they are from. Do not be too fixated on chasing trophies until you forget the more important issues,” he wrote on the Johor Southern Tigers Facebook page.

Football players and coaches, he reminded have families to support and they are not livestock.

Tunku Ismail however said that news of tycoons and millionaires looking to sponsor football clubs lately was a “positive sign for football” and that the teams were eager to be sponsored.

Vida Beauty Sdn Bhd CEO, Hasmiza Othman or Datuk Vida recently agreed to sponsor the Kelantan football team, while D’Herbs founder Aliff Shukri Kamarzaman has expressed interest in sponsoring recent Malaysia Cup champions, Selangor.

Apart from the two, Nouvelles Visages owner, Rita Sosilawati and leading corporate figure, Syed Mokhtar Al-Bukhary have also been linked to similar sponsorship deals.