Alaska draws 6,150 participants for its 20th Football Cup
- Jamil Buergo
- Nov 30, 2015
- 2 min read
The biggest football event in the country is now celebrating its 20th year and has drawn over 6,000 young athletes who will compete in the three-day event at the Alabang Country Club.
The Alaska Football Cup is one of the biggest and highly anticipated annual football tournament for young athletes. Players as young as six years old up to sixteen participate in this annual. Teams are comprised of various schools and football clubs in various provinces such as Masbate, Baguio, Negros Occidental, Cebu, Davao, Palawan, Legaspi, Laguna, Batangas, Bukidnon, Zambales, Pampanga, Tarlac, Ilocos, Bicol, Romblon, Davao Sur, Compostela Valley, Quezon, Cavite, Albay, Pangasinan, Bacolod, Iloilo, Mindoro and Metro Manila.
With 6,150 participants from various school teams and football clubs nationwide, the tournament undeniably is one of the most successful grassroots-development programs in the local football scene.
“This marks another monumental event for Alaska”, says Wilfred Uytengsu, President and CEO of Alaska Milk Corporation. “It is of great pride to witness how the Alaska Sports Program has engaged young athletes into this kind of culture, and how they live by the values inherent in sports” added Uytengsu.
Like in other Alaska Milk supported sporting events, their ultimate goal is to encourage sports engagement, as it instills the values of determination, discipline, hard work, teamwork and sportsmanship. The Alaska Football Cup also aims to develop the athletic and social skills of young children through healthy competition.
The tournament also teaches kids to become competitive and enjoy playing sports not for money, but for passion of the game. Alaska Milk VP for Marketing Blen Fernando shares that despite the huge number of participants and varying locations where they come from, there is no prize money for the winners of the tournament. “Bragging rights, trophy, and Alaska gift packs are the only things they can bring home when they win” says Fernando.
Spanish Tomas Lozano, a former professional football player of Real Madrid and founder of Makati Football School, spearheads the tournament.
The Alaska Football Cup also held a special tournament for people with special needs. The tournament drew 4-teams composed of physically and intellectually challenged individuals from Elsie Gaches. According to Tomas Lozano, he dreams that one day, a special team will be able to compete at the regular age-group or open categories of the Alaska Football Cup. "It's a good way to highlight the 20th year of the Alaska Football Cup, by giving attention to special people," says Darwin Engracia, one of the coaches of the special teams in an interview with Joey Villar of the Philippine Star. "Hopefully in the future we can also gear towards unifying the normal players and special people so that later they will not feel labeled," he added.
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