Riding on the heels of the historic Asian Cup 2019 qualification the Philippine Men’s National Team, more popularly known as The Azkals, the Philippines is set as the perfect venue for the upcoming “The Business of Football – Philippines” – a one-day conference to be held at New World Hotel Makati on May 18.
The summit will bring together all key stakeholders of the Philippine football community – from rights holders, football clubs, agencies, brands, media, retail, real estate, and of course, the fans. The overall objective is to educate and to discuss the current state of football in the Philippines, with the goal of being able to determine the strategy to make it a bigger spectator sport in the country.
“There is so much untapped potential in the football business in the Philippines, that we felt like it is time to bring all the key stakeholders together in one room, and to discuss the state of the game, and how we can develop the sport in the Philippines,” said Eric M. Gottschalk, CEO of MMC Sportz Asia Inc., the organizer of the conference.
“The inauguration of the professional football league in 2017 and the recent international successes of both the men’s and the women’s national football teams should be a springboard for the sport to finally take off in a basketball dominated country. But we noticed that the key stakeholders are still adapting a ‘wait-and-see’ approach,” Gottschal added.
“Private investment is needed in sports infrastructure, retailers need to offer a wider range of equipment options to the participants, and the media needs to make football a regular news feature. We are proud to launch this first get-together of the ‘who’s who’ in Philippines football, with the overall aim to listen and learn about the vision for football in the country from a professional point of view. We are excited to bring this event to Manila, and hoping for it to impact the development of football in the Philippines, and for it to become a regular feature on the annual sports events calendar.”
Philippine Azkals Team Manager Dan Palami said, “It is high time we get our act together, and elevate the level of the sport, in time for the upcoming Asian Cup 2019, wherein the country, and the Philippine Azkals will have the opportunity to make a mark, and create history in the international football scene.”
The conference will cover topics such as Football in South East Asia, State of Football in the Philippines, Why Brands Should Get Involved, Developing Football in Asia, Asian Cup 2019, Youth Academies, among others. The event will also feature a Job Fair, wherein participants can explore careers in football, learn from industry leaders, and get to network with key executives in the industry.
Delegate passes are priced at PhP2,750 for regular and PhP1,500 for the student pass. For information visit www.mmc-sportz.com/the-business-of-football-conference/.