The PFF Suzuki U-23 Cup kicks off for the next generation of Azkals

This appears in the Monday March 21, 2011 edition of the Business Mirror.

The PFF Suzuki U-23 Cup kicks off for the next generation of Azkals

by rick olivares

Satoshi Uchida could not understand why there wasn’t a better appreciation for football in the Philippines. The President of Suzuki Philippines, a lifelong fan of football – of the Japan National Team and FC Barcelona, had an epiphany when the Azkals romped through last year’s Suzuki Cup. “I want to sponsor football here and help in its growth,” beamed the bespectacled and animated Japanese official.

Reaching out to the leadership of the Philippine Football Federation, the stars aligned for the planned Under-23 national tournament to take off. “This is the tournament where we discover the next generation of Azkals,” announced President Mariano V. Araneta in a simple press conference held last Friday March 18, 2011 at the PFF House of Football in Pasig City. “They will also form the team that will compete in this year’s football tournament in the Southeast Asian Games held in Indonesia.”

Of the current senior team, the only players qualified to suit up include goalkeepers Neil Etheridge and Christopher Camcam, midfielders Jason de Jong, Mark Drinkuth, Manuel Ott and Mark Ferrer, and defender David Basa. The squad will likewise be coached by Hans Michael Weiss of the seniors team.

The tournament enforces Suzuki’s support of the PFF in their goal to improve and promote football in the light of its unifying, educational, cultural and humanitarian values in all forms throughout the Philippines. Currently, Suzuki sponsors only motoring events and the U-23 football tournament is the first that the Japanese company is sponsoring outside the biennial Asean Football Federation Suzuki Cup.

The PFF Suzuki Under-23 Cup which adopts the rules and guidelines of the ASEAN Football Federation kicks-off this March 29 with regional qualifiers to follow though the months of April.

Starting with eight teams, two each from Luzon, Visayas, Mindanao, and the National Capital Region that qualify will be paired into two groups, to battle in a single-elimination format for a home-and-away semifinal match to determine the finalists. The finals will happen in May 15 of this year.  

Only members of the PFF are invited to join.  There are currently 33 members from across the country -- 11 in Luzon, 5 in Visayas and 17 in Mindanao.  A selection team or club may represent each Football Association (FA) and selection shall be at the discretion of each FA.  Each selection team may only be represented by Filipino players born on or after 01 January 1988.  Players may opt to play for either the current mother club or their province of birth, provided that these players will secure transfer permits from their current clubs.  Individual players are required to present their NSO-certified copy of their birth certificate and/or valid Philippine passport, and passport photos, while the FA is only required to submit their team list with jersey numbers and playing positions.

The PFF has signified its intention to host the group stage of the 2014 Suzuki Cup alongside Singapore.


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Did my best to help out ABS CBN and Stoplight by interviewing PFF's Mariano Araneta and Red Avelino as well as Suzuki's Satoshi Uchida, Shuzo Hoshikura, and Benedict Arreola.