“Football Para sa Bayan,” the successful grassroots football program of Globe Telecom which was largely helped underserved Filipino youth to tap their full potential through sports, recently received a major boost as it teams up with the telco’s mass market brand TM to widen its reach and scope nationwide.
Now known as “TM Football Para sa Bayan,” the thirf staging of this sports will evolve as a major initiative to provide undiscovered but deserving talents from local street football communities a chance to showcase their skills against the very best in the Philippines. It will roll-out an inclusive year-long program to aid children from disadvantaged backgrounds and harness their innate talents in football.
The platform will consist of clinics, festivals and mentoring sessions, which will serve as venue for skills development as well as rapport-building with barangays and local government units, among others. These will be spearheaded by key movers in the local football scene, including Globe Ambassador, former Azkals Team Captain and current Green Archers United co-captain/central midfielder Emelio “Chieffy” Caligdong.
TM Portfolio and Brand Management Director Trina Sebastian said that, “For three years now, the ‘Football para sa bayan’ program has positively affected thousands of marginalized Filipino youth by providing them a venue to fulfill their dreams for a better life through sports. We want to grow this initiative further not only by honing their skills and increasing the level of play even at a veey young age, but also helping pave the way for them to become productive and responsible citizens of this country.”
Meanwhile, as a prime mover of this sporting endeavor especially in the countryside, Caligdong pointed out that, “it is an honor to play a major part of ‘TM Football Para sa Bayan’, where i’ve seen the interest from a lot of kids whose ticket to a better life is through sports. Not only are we helping them with a possible means to secure a good future – we are also harnessing untapped talents who can succeed us to become the next generation footballers of the Philippines.”
Since 2013, the Sports program has provided more than 5,000 talented Filipino youth in 40 communities with a platform to perform in a bigger stage agaonst top football clubs in Metro Manila. Last year, it produced two players who are currently enjoying sports scholarships from top learning institutions in the country, including De La Salle-Zobel, University of the Philippines and Polytechnic University of the Philippines. Also included is a values formation component, giving it a holistic approach in terms of personal development.
This year, “TM Football Para sa Bayan” will reach out to more key areas in the Philippines, with more festivals covering the cities Dumaguete, Iloilo, Davao as well as in the provinces of Palawan and Capiz. The mentoring will also be enhanced in terms of equipment ans coaching support. In partnership with Green Archers United, the sports program will field a selection among the 40 street communities for the opening of the United Football League (UFL) summer tournament. Tryouts and training will be conducted from March to April 2015.
The”TM Football Para sa Bayan” is set to kick-off its initial phase with a Football Festival, a 7-side tournament where Calindong will reprise his role in honoring the skills of the younger townsfolk in his native Barotac Nuevo in Iloilo City on March 7 and 8. Also in the works is to hold street football leagues, which will be executed in the barangay level from the months of July to October. Aside from conducting the games, the brand will also be featuring various activation activities to spur the interest and excitement during play dates.
