From left, Glenn Quisido, Pericles Dakay, Eduardo Aboitiz and Sonny Carpio join hands during a press launching of the 18th Aboitiz Football Cup at the Pueblo Verde in Mactan. (CDN PHOTO/CHRISTIAN MANINGO)
Organizers of Aboitiz Football Cup say prestigious tournament has vastly improved through the years
From a P50,000 donation from the Aboitiz Equity Ventures 18 years ago, the Aboitiz Football Cup has indeed come a long way.
This, organizers revealed in a press launching of the 18th season of the prestigious football tournament yesterday at the Pueblo Verde in Lapu-Lapu City.
The annual football event will have its opening on Sept. 4 with games set to start Sept. 10. The tournament will run until March next year.
Sonny Carpio, Aboitiz Foundation’s executive vice president, recalled the tournament’s beginnings with just a P50,000 donation from the Aboitiz Equity Ventures. He said football then was not that popular.
But he said the tournament is now worth a million pesos as it has produced a long list of talented booters who are now competing in the international and national levels.
“I still remember the P50,000 donation from Aboitiz to start off the tournament and now it’s worth a million pesos,” Carpio said. “Records show that the tournament has improved a lot over the years.”
From the P50,000 donation, the tournament received a whopping P1.3 million from AboitizLand Inc. and Aboitiz Foundation to further enhance and mold future Cebuano football stars.
Joining Carpio in the press conference were Cebu Football Association (CFA) president Ricky Dakay, CFA official Glenn Quisido and AboitizLand’s chief Eduardo Aboitiz.
“It’s not just quantity but quality,” added Dakay. “The tournament improved over the years and we’ve seen a lot of Cebuano footballers who are now playing and showcasing their talents in the bigger tournaments.”
CFA and AboitizLand, meanwhile, formalized their partnership for the upcoming tournament with a MOA signing yesterday.
A total of 160 teams composed of 40 schools and 120 football clubs have already enlisted in the tournament.
Games will be held at the Cebu City Sports Center (CCSC) and four other venues in the cities of Cebu and Mandaue.