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Your Guide to Pinoy Football in 2015: Part Two

Image copyright Bob Guerrero.

This is the second installment of a two-part series on what football fans in the Philippines can expect this year. To read Part One, click here.

UFL. I was originally told that the UFL, the country’s de facto top-tier league, will kick off later this month after the Smart-PFF Club Championship, but it seems it will begin a bit later because the Smart PFF ends on January 31.

My understanding is that the UFL league and cup competitions will run concurrently this year, as is done in most serious football countries. Most weeks there will be league play, some certain days, cup games.

The UFL has the whole year to complete both competitions and that is okay. With all the other stuff going on like Azkals games, SEA Games, etc, there is a danger of fixture congestion, so it’s good to spread things out.

This schedule tweak puts us in line with the club schedule in other ASEAN countries, which is good.

I am told that the UFL wants to have an all-star weekend in May which may include one of my pet projects, an Iloilo vs Negros Occidental All-Star game, which I am now referring to as the Western Visayan Classic. I am very much working on that. Will keep you all posted.

Ceres and Global look to be the favorites for this year’s league but Kaya and Loyola also have a shot at title glory if they can play consistently good.

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AFC Cup. The Asian Football Confederation Cup is an international club competition for developing associations/nations in Asia. It sits a tier below the AFC Champions League, won last year by Australia’s Western Sydney Wanderers. The AFC CL features top clubs from Asia’s strongest nations.

The AFC Cup is not to be confused with the AFC Asian Cup, which is ongoing in Australia. The Asian Cup is for countries, not clubs. Had we beaten Palestine in the AFC Challenge Cup final, the Azkals would be in that competition right now.

Once upon a time there was the President’s Cup, a competition for clubs in “emerging” nations like the Philippines that was even lower in prestige than the AFC Cup. Global and Ceres joined the qualifying phases in 2013 and 2014, respectively, but did not make the final stage. Like its national team counterpart, the Challenge Cup, the President’s Cup has gone the way of the Dodo bird and stepping into the vacuum is an expanded AFC Cup.

Global, the 2014 UFL League champs, is seeded directly into the East Asia zone in group G, with either Yadanarbon from Myanmar, South China from Hong Kong, and Pahang from Malaysia. But Yadanarbon is also trying to qualify for the Asian Champions League group stage. If they make it then they will be replaced by Yangon United.

Leigh Manson’s boys play South China on February 25, the Myanmar club on the fifteenth of April, and Pahang on May 12. I know that Global will have at least one home game, hopefully two. The top two teams advance to the round of 16.

Ceres-La Salle, the UFL Division 2, UFL FA Cup, and Smart-PFF national champs, on the other hand, enter the competition a round below Global. They face off against Maldives side Maziya on February the 17th . I believe this game will be held in Maldives.

Should the Bacolod-based team hurdle the South Asians they join Group E, which is comprised of Indonesia’s Persepura Jayapura, Bengaluru of India, and Singaporean outfit Warriors. However, Warriors will be replaced by Tampines Rovers if Warriors qualify for the Asian Champions League group stage.

Both Ceres and Global will face very stiff competition for sure.

No word yet on whether this tournament will be covered on TV here.

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UAAP. Save two dates: Sunday, March 1, for the one-game mens semifinals, and Sunday, March 8 for the one-game, winner-takes-all final match for the Season 77 trophy. The women’s final will also be held on March 8. I believe the plan is to have these games in Rizal Memorial. You can expect TV coverage on ABS-CBN.

I might have preferred a two-legged semi to make sure that a strong team won’t get eliminated after a bad day, but at least this new format is super exciting. In previous years the semis were played with the higher-seeded teams having twice-to-beat and the finals being a best-of-three.

I also love that the UAAP has allowed a whole week in between the semis and the final. (Are you listening, UFL?) That gives the media an entire week to drum up excitement and interest for the game. The fact that the match is on a Sunday will mean that the students of the schools in the final should be able to turn out and create a fantastic, cup-final like atmosphere in Rizal.

As of this writing UP and Ateneo are in the top spots but my bet is that FEU will be one of the teams in those games.

You can watch UAAP football live on Balls HD (Wednesdays for the next two weeks, Thursdays thereafter,) and delayed on Sports + Action on Friday afternoons.

NCAA. The NCAA playoffs will take place on January 26, and 8am and 10am, according to the information I have received. These matches will also take place in Rizal Memorial. The ten am is a bit late in the morning for artificial turf, in my opinion. I can assume that the final series will follow soon after. I can also safely assume that San Beda will be a hot favorite to win it all again.

Singapore Cup. The Football Association of Singapore has a long history of inviting foreign teams from the region to its club cup (knockout) competition. In the past years Global and Loyola have played in this event, with Loyola once reaching the semifinals.

Randy Roxas, vice-chairman of Loyola Meralco Sparks, says that the side will play in the Lion City once again if invited. He says invitations usually come in by March or April. Expect Global to also accept an invitation if given one.

It’s my understanding that the FAS likes having Pinoy clubs over, since they help fill up the stands with Singapore’s large Filipino expatriate community.

Follow Bob on Twitter @PassionateFanPH.