Hasmiza, better known as Datuk Vida, was responding to rumours circulating online that claim she is set to halt further sponsorship because of the team’s lacklustre performance.

“I don’t deny that rumour. I’m a business person, I want what I’m selling to be effective and helpful (to the team),” she said. “But, if they don’t improve their performance while my sales are plunging, how am I supposed to pay (salaries)?”

In January, Datuk Vida had announced sponsorship of the Red Warriors (as the team are known) for two seasons in a deal worth RM16 million, which included her appointment as adviser to the Kelantan FA.

She has proposed building a six-star hotel, at a cost of RM280 million, next to the Sultan Muhammad IV Stadium, to provide football fans the luxury of watching matches from the comfort of their own rooms.

Her sponsorship made waves when she attached several conditions to the deal, one of them was to repaint the stadium in pink, and for matches to be more family-friendly.