Games and Amusements Board chairman Abraham Mitra hailed the efforts of the Philippine Football Federation and the Philippines Football League in putting strict health standards in place to ensure the staging of its 2020 season brought to you by Qatar Airways.
Speaking at a virtual press conference launching the league’s 2020 season last Wednesday, Mitra praised the collaboration of the GAB and the PFF which helped make the 2020 season possible.
“(PFL) Commissioner Coco (Torre) worked very closely with our office to try to conform if not surpass the guidelines set forth by the Joint Administrative Order by the Philippine Sports Commission, Games and Amusements Board and Department of Health,” said Mitra. “We are not just a sports regulatory body, but we’re also football fans cheering from the sidelines.”
PFF president Mariano “Nonong” Araneta and PFF general secretary Edwin Gastanes thanked the GAB for assisting the PFL in its efforts to secure government approval to start the season.
Mitra noted that the PFL was actually the first professional league in the country that took the initiative in submitting health protocols. Torre worked closely with GAB’s health and safety officers, including Kara Mallonga. Torre also expressed gratitude to the Philippine Basketball Association for sharing its protocols on the bubble setup.
“The PFL was very compliant and and they went above and beyond the usual health standards,” said Mallonga.
Mitra is firm in his belief that the PFL can stage a successful season amid the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We believe in the organization and we always believe in self-regulation,” said Mitra. “The organization has flourished and we think it’s going to go to greater heights later on. So much possibility so many bigger things can happen later on.”
Mitra said he may be able to drop by the matches at PFF National Training Center in Carmona, Cavite to monitor the compliance of the league.
“Despite the pandemic, we’d like to congratulate PFF and PFL for coming up with a season,” said Mitra. “We feel very strongly about the organizations and that it is ran very well.”