Aston Villa’s multi-year agreement with Visit Rwanda will see players from the club’s men’s and women’s teams visit the African country, according to the CEO of the country’s convention bureau.The Athletic revealed earlier on Tuesday that Villa had reached an agreement with Visit Rwanda to be the new front of shirt sponsor.Club sources with knowledge of the deal, speaking anonymously because they were not authorised to do so publicly, said the partnership is the most lucrative in Villa’s history, with a 20 per cent increase on previous sponsor, betting company, Betano.Club sources claimed the agreement could be worth up to £20million a year if bonuses are met.Visit Rwanda is the national tourism brand of the country, intending to promote the nation as a premier travel and investment destination, but it has proven controversial. As previously reported by The Athletic, its sponsorship deals with other European clubs have been the subject of protests and accusations of sportswashing.Rwanda has been led by president Paul Kagame of the Rwanda Patriotic Front (RPF) party since 2000.United Nations (UN) reports linked the Rwandan government to the M23, which the UN states is an “armed group” operating in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the mineral-rich nation that borders Rwanda to the west. In February 2025, the UN called on the Rwandan government to “cease support to the M23 and immediately withdraw from DRC territory”.Kagame’s government has categorically denied offering financial or military support and says it has only taken measures to protect Rwandan territory.Visit Rwanda’s European partnerships currently include Paris Saint-Germain and Atletico Madrid, but its shirt sleeve deal with Arsenal, after being worth £10million a year, concluded after eight years at the end of last season.Arsenal had an eight-year partnership with the Rwanda Development Board (Justin/AFP via Getty Images)Speaking to The Athletic, Janet Karemera, Chief Executive Officer of Rwanda Convention Bureau (RCB), outlined some of collaborations between Villa and Visit Rwanda.“They’re (Villa) going to come to Rwanda,” she said, speaking earlier on Thursday. “They’re going to visit. We have in our partnership the men’s team, women’s team are coming to visit. Also the executive leadership (team). On their board they have a board member who’s already invested in Rwanda. So I think they’re very much aware of the country and its ambitions.”As well as the men’s and women’s team, the agreement involves club legends, members of the executive leadership team and staff from Villa’s football department will travel to Rwanda.