IN THREE weeks’ time, the Azkals will be competing in the 2014 Peace Cup as the host team and defending champions.
This time, as what the Philippine Football Federation has confirmed, the teams that will see action in the invitational tournament are Chinese Taipei, Myanmar and Palestine.
The Philippine Men’s National Team is slated to meet Chinese Taipei on Sept. 3, Myanmar on Sept. 6, and Palestine on Sept. 9 at the Rizal Memorial Stadium.
The tournament also serves as the Azkals’ preparation for the the AFF Suzuki Cup this November.
Considered the toughest among the three visiting teams, Palestine recently edged the Azkals in the AFC Challenge Cup final in the Maldives.
However, it wouldn’t be appropriate to call the Sept. 9 encounter as a chance for the Philippine side to exact revenge on their Challenge Cup tormentors that denied them a slot to the 2015 AFC Asian Cup. It is the Peace Cup after all.
In case you didn’t know, September is National Peace Consciousness Month, and this is the third Philippine Peace Cup since the inaugural tournament in 2012.
This edition, though, could see more heightened awareness with the participation of the Palestinian football team, whose homeland is in a state of war.
Whatever geopolitical undertones fans and observers glean, the bigger picture doesn’t change: the tournament is on the side of peace, a message it communicates through football.
PREMIER LEAGUE AND LA LIGA. Last year, a number of Filipino football fans wanted to wage war on giant television broadcasters after news broke that the local cable networks won’t be airing the English Premier League.
This was after a global network of sports channels secured the exclusive rights to air the league matches.
That meant Fox Sports or Star Sports ceased airing the EPL games.
For their weekly EPL fill, fans must head to local bars and pubs that show the games.
Still, I tried my luck the other day and the called cable provider’s hotline and asked the agent on the other end of the line whether, by any chance, any of the channels carried the EPL games. He said yes, on ESPN!
Nice try, Johnny English, but ESPN no longer exists.
In its place is Fox Sports, which fortunately carries the La Liga matches. And if you were wondering, the first game this season between Malaga and Athletic Bilbao will be aired live next, next Sunday at 1 a.m.. Lucky La Liga fans. (nsvillaflor@gmail.com)