$2.3m for football tournament

BOOTS of local footballers will no longer be collecting dust as $2.3 million will be pumped into the Ascension Invitational Tournament that will kick off tomorrow featuring 24 teams.

Pro League and Super League teams will be involved in the league with 12 teams playing in division one along with the same number of teams in division two. The announcement was made at The Hotel Normandie in St Ann’s, yesterday. No football has been held locally since December 2018.

Ascension is a group of business people using the league as a test for a new line of sporting apparel, which will be introduced to TT and the Caribbean later this year.

The tournament will be played in a round robin format from tomorrow until September 21.

Two matches will be held tomorrow in division one with Guaya Utd playing Police FC, at Guaya Recreation Ground, from 4 pm and FC Santa Rosa FC battling QPCC, at Arima Velodrome, from 8 pm.

The division one winners will walk away with $250,000, second place will get $125,000 and the third place finishers will cop $75,000. In division two, the champions will be $100,000 richer, the runner up will earn $65,000 and the third place finishers will get $35,000. An appearance fee of $2,000 would be given to each team for each game that they play in division one and $1,000 in division two.

The teams competing in division one will be Guaya United FC, Police FC, FC Santa Rosa, QPCC, Terminix La Horquetta Rangers FC, San Juan Jabloteh, Caledonia AIA, Prison Service FC, Matura Reunited FC, Club Sando FC, Cunupia FC and Defence Force FC.

Lining up in division two will be Deportivo PF, Harlem Strikers, UTT, Moruga FC, Police FC, Petit Valley/Diego Martin Utd, Marabella Family Crisis Centre, RSSR FC, Bethel Utd, Club Sando Uprising Youths, San Fernando Giants and Erin FC.

W Connection, Central FC and North East Stars are the notable clubs that are not competing in the league.

A 30-minute television programme will be produced which delivers highlights of the tournament every week that will be aired on Flow and as such the tournament would be used to expose TT football internationally.

The tournament director is Richard Piper and marketing director of All Sports Promotions Anthony Harford, said his company has helped with registration and other administrative matters in the league.

The tournament is sanctioned by the TT Football Association.