Aston Villa have been warned their new £20m-a-year sponsorship deal with Visit Rwanda will be used by the nation to sportswash its human rights record.

🌐 Here's What Happened

The African country's tourist board will replace Betano on the front of Villa's shirts for the men's, women's and academy teams in a multi-year agreement.

The Premier League club have branded the move "the most important sponsorship deal in the history of the football club" but Felix Jakens, Amnesty International UK's head of campaigns, has raised concerns.

Last month the Democratic Republic of Congo filed a case against Rwanda at the International Court of Justice (ICJ), accusing its neighbour of breaching multiple international treaties.

📌 Key Details

DR Congo said Rwanda had dispatched forces and backed armed groups to carry out unlawful military operations on its territory following the 1994 Rwandan genocide.

Rwanda has long-dismissed evidence that it backs rebel groups in the country, but UN experts and Western governments are among various parties who say Rwanda is supporting the M23, a major armed group in DR Congo's east.

"It's not new that Rwanda is using sportswashing to deflect attention from its terrible human rights record," said Jakens, in a statement to BBC Sport.

" Aston Villa should be well aware that Rwanda is seeking to leverage this partnership to create positive PR. The country is prolific in arbitrary detention, torture and the repression of free speech – these are abuses at home.

"We are seeing bloodshed right before our eyes in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Rwanda is playing a significant role in fuelling that conflict – both through its support to the M23 rebels and the direct 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."

📰 Source: BBC Africa