I am originally from Mandaluyong city, Manila. I learnt to play football with Don Bosco Mandaluyong during the 70’s – barefoot and the pitch was not always with grass (sometimes, we needed to walk around the pitch and pick up broken glass before playing).
During that decade, the rector of the school, Fr. Panfillo was also a player-coach for Carnation FC (ie Carnation - brand of milk), a competition under RIFA (Rizal FA). It was an amateur to semi-pro competition. As usual, Air Force, Army and Navy are the other teams as well.
Games were played at the old ULTRA.
PHI PRO LEAGUE ?
To start a pro league, requires the usual principal foundations – finances (money), structure, good management system, teams that are viable, fan base etc etc.
With an economy like PHI, to start something like a pro football league at a truly national format will be difficult.
One of my criticism of the PBA is it uses the word “Philippines” and yet all teams in this basketball league are owned by corporations located in Metro Manila. Similarly, the NCAA of the PHI uses the word “National” when most / all universities and colleges that compete in this varsity competition are all from Metro Manila (specifically, within the Diliman campus belt).
So, in my view, if PHI is going to start a pro football league, it has to be truly NATIONAL and not just based in Metro Manila (ie UFL). It has to involvedteams from Zamboanga / Davao del Sur and all the way to Aparri (including every regions between those three geographic locations).
One of the main problems that will face any franchise that will start a club in PHI (apart from finance, sponsorship etc) is to ensure that they have enough finances to meet their obligations to play away games – playing away games week in and week out is something no team in any pinoy sport have done before.
WHAT FORMAT TO USE
Also there is the question of what league format to use that can be practicable for all. Do you use the English League format (several divisions with relegation and promotion system – a format common to all euro football leagues)?
Or do you use a regional format?
ENGLISH FOOTBALL LEAGUE
The English football system, traditionally have Divisions 1,2,3,4 (currently known as EPL, The Championship, League One and League Two respectively).
This league covers all towns, cities, boroughs (aka municipalities) located in England (PS: it also have clubs from Wales – Cardiff and Swansea).
No matter how big the town or the city is, it will have a club. In some cases, a city will have more than one club. All up, there are 90 plus clubs in this league system. Clubs like Plymouth Argyle FC (southern tip of England) are expected to play clubs like Darlington FC or maybe Newcastle United (North-Eastern tip of England) during league matches, if they are in the same division or during FA and league cup games, if they are drawn together. So, for clubs like these, which are in opposite ends of England, away games are truly AWAY games (ie air or train travel is required).
Apply this scenario to teams coming from Zamboanga or Aparri. Due to their geographic locations in PHI, you can expect ZAM and APA to be the teams that will travel the most on away games – you can also expect majority of their away games require air travel. Hence, this is one major overhead cost any club owner need to consider.
Now, PHI have 97 million people, if we have an economy like Japan or even say, Switzerland – we can have a league system just like England with every city of very region or even towns from every province represented in this league.
But in reality, we do not have that sort of economy. Additionally, the English league system / format although recognizable to those who are ardent followers of the EPL or Euro football, it may not be successful in PHI. I do not believe pinoys in PHI will fully appreciate a relegation system.
REGIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS WITH A GRAND FINAL FORMAT?
One of the viable league format that can be a success in PHI is a variant of the NFL, NBA, MLB system. Where teams from similar geographic locations are grouped together.
Example: we can divide Mindanao into 4 zones (ie North, South, East and West). Do the same for Luzon and Visayas.
Each zone can have 5 teams each (home and away format). The winners from each zone will play against each other within their region (home and away) to determine the champions of the region ie the champions for Luzon, Visayas, Mindanao.
PS: since there is an odd number, this system might use a ‘wild-card’ to even up the teams
GeeDee, can you slot in the teams you mentioned in your post in this format?
Then, the champions from each region (plus a wild card) will play knock-out home and away play-off. The last two will play in a one-off grand final game. The winner will be the national champion.
I believe this system will be practicable in PHI. It will reduce “out-of-the province” travel. And the only time a team is expected to go outside their province / region is at the inter-regional knock-out home and away play-off stage.
WHERE TO FROM HERE
Regardless of the criticism the Azkal players attract (ie so called hype, show biz, etc), what they’ve done for Pinoy football is much, much, more than what I’ve seen since the 70s, 80s, 90s.
During the past 4 decades, I cannot recall ever seeing a RP XI game televised live on pinoy TV (apart from seeing highlights of Carnation FC game on channel 4). During the past 4 decades, I cannot recall seeing 13-14,000 fans at Rizal stadium to see a football game (but I remember a RP NCAA XI demolished by a Singapore XI 16-0 at the ULTRA in 1981, 30 people in the stands…I was one of them).
There are still a lot to be done. Most football countries have been playing football for 100 years. The PFA / PFF was established in 1907, but we had a 100 years black hole, in theory we are playing catch-up. Hopefully, under the FIFA Goal program / funds, PFF will develop a sustainable and manageable grassroots system, a sustainable and manageable league that will develop players and produce future players for the national team.
"Do or do not. There is no try" (Master Yoda)
