SVG opts out of hosting two CFTL matches

St Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) has opted out of hosting two international soccer games that would have featured major international clubs.

The games were scheduled for February 1, 2017 at the Arnos Vale Stadium, but Minister of Tourism, Sports and Culture Cecil McKie said in a December 1 letter to the organizers that because of financial constraints, the Government would be unable to host the games.{{more}}

The games were being organized by Caribbean Football Trust Limited (CFTL), who in 2017 will hold the official launch of the Caribbean League Futbol (CLF), featuring the legendary Pele’s Brazilian home team of Santos FC from Sao Paulo.

The CFTL noted in a press release that in 1972 Santos FC, featuring three-time Brazilian World Cup winner “Pele” toured the Caribbean countries of Jamaica, Suriname and Trinidad and Tobago with much success.

“Now, in 2017, 45 years later Santos FC will take centre stage in a Best of Three games series kicking off January 27 at the Windsor Park in Dominica continuing January 29 at the Arnos Vale Stadium in St Vincent and then on February 4, the final game will be played at the Andre Kamperveen Stadium in Suriname,” the CTFL had stated.

But according to McKie’s letter, which was addressed to Chris Anderson, chair and chief financial oficer (CFO) of the CTFL, the recent trough systems that have affected the country has caused millions of dollars in infrastructural damage here.

“Consequent upon this new reality, the Government of St Vincent and the Grenadines is currently faced with an enormous challenge to respond to this destruction and the need to rebuild…it is therefore unfortunate that we will be unable to host the two games in St Vincent and the Grenadines at the proposed dates.”

“CFTL is also preparing to offer fans a major International friendly bonus game featuring two major International clubs scheduled for February 1 in St Vincent at the Arnos Vale Stadium. Several International Elite Marquee players will be representing the Combine Islands FC team as guest players,” the release had stated.

It is not yet clear which island will replace SVG as the host for the games, but the CTFL said that one of the games, the final one, will be for the prestigious inaugural “Islands Cup Open” and would be versus the newly established Combine Islands FC.

The names of Combine Islands FC players will be announced in the upcoming weeks, while the CTFL has also announced the establishment of the CLF.

The CLF will be a professional 12-week regional tournament, with eight teams competing for the league title and over US$3 million in prize money. This will increase up to US$5 million after the first three years.

“This is a proud moment for all of us in the Caribbean as there will finally be a very high profile professional league in the region and our players and coaches can earn a living participating in the sport they love,” said Anderson.

The concept and structure of the CFL is said to have been garnered from several regional associations’ presidents, as well as Heads of State and Ministers of Tourism.

“The vision of stimulating the regional tourism product and placing focus on Sports and Entertainment Tourism as a main platform to drive their Tourism products would be of benefit to the region. CFTL’s main focus is to establish across CARICOM member states modern sports and entertainment complexes, including sports rehab centers and vacation/residential estate homes. These will be targeted to multi-million dollar earning athletes and entertainers,” said a CFTL release.

“The CTFL is confident that this aspect of the project is of utmost importance for the region. One of the major aims of the CLF is to fast track the development of young regional footballers and to show-case their talents on the international stage. This will lead to an improvement in the performance of Caribbean players whether at club or national level. It is hoped that this will result in more Caribbean member national teams appearing at FIFA World Cup competitions”, said the release.

The CLF is expected to run between June and August of each calendar year. The first official competitive season shall consist of scheduled games three days per week: Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays, (all double headers) to be played in the selected countries in two groups of four clubs per hub.

In addition to the regular season and its play-off Champions Cup titles, CLF shall organize two CLF All-Star teams for annual friendly games at the end of each season to showcase the collective talent of the region. CFTL will host games in markets where international games are not regularly hosted.