ABS-CBN INKS FOUR YEAR DEAL WITH PFF & AZKALS
By Ronnie Nathanielsz
PhilBoxing.com
Fri, 10 Feb 2012
The amazing growth of public interest in football sparked by the emergence of the Philippine Azkals and the increased coverage of football on television has been further enhanced by a four-year deal signed between the giant broadcast network ABS-CBN and the Philippine Football Federation for exclusive rights for most of the games of the popular Philippine Azkals National Team.
The agreement was signed by ABS-CBN president and CEO Gabby Lopez, PFF president Mariano ?Nonong? Araneta and was witnessed among others by ABS-CBN vice president for Sports Peter Musngi and Azkals team manager Dan Palami at the network?s executive lounge on Thursday.
Lopez himself sparked the interest in football when he decided to telecast the Azkals matches in the Suzuki Cup two years ago which quickly sparked excitement and interest in both the team and the sport itself. The Azkals runner-up finish to powerhouse Indonesia in both legs played in Indonesia in which the Filipinos lost both legs by a solitary goal was regarded as one of the finest achievements in years.
Following the signing of the agreement Musngi told the Manila Standard the deal involves not only the men?s national team but also involves the women?s and the under 23 and under 21 squads.
Musngi stressed ?The thrust is not only for the promotion of the Azkals but also the other PFF events and initiatives in the countryside. Grassroots football is something that we would be involved in with the end in view of ensuring that we have the next generation of Azkals or national team members.?
Musngi clarified that ABS-CBN has the rights to cover and telecast all Azkals games ?except those where the games have been awarded to a third party by virtue of a contract with the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) or Asean Football Federation (AFF). This covers those that have been awarded already prior to Thursday?s signing.?
The top executive of the network who also manages the leading radio station dzMM Teleradyo said ?if the PFF does not have it (the TV rights) directly they will ensure that ABS-CBN at the very least gets the right of first refusal .?
He said that ?whether it?s a sanctioned game, a friendly or an exhibition or a charity game that?s part and parcel of the contract.?
Musngi underscored what he described as ?the corporate social responsibility for public service is part and parcel of what we want to do with the PFF ? make football give back as it has enjoyed so much in terms of patronage in the past year which was a phenomenal year for football in the Philippines.?
This echoed the initial remarks of Gabby Lopez when he decided to risk getting the rights for the last Suzuki Cup and maintained it was in keeping with his vision ? In the service of the Filipino in sports and youth development.?
Musngi said the growth of football in terms of popularity and public support in a short time has been ?amazing and its still growing so we want to make sure we are able to sustain the interest and the excitement? even as he maintained that ?it does not have to start and end with the Azkals as we know the team today.?
Musngi credited the influx of Fil-foreigners for jump-starting the interest in football and said ?we owe these guys a lot. Long-term you cannot be without a local grassroots development program because you want to make sure you have a choice of so many worthy candidates for our national team. With all the Fil-foreign players they were able to infuse not only the knowledge but also the kind of dedication, commitment and the style which resulted in world-class football becoming a part of the national team in record time because of these guys.?
However, he maintained that ?you can?t depend on a steady supply so you need homegrown talents to step up.?
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Ronnie Nathanielsz.
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