TT get Digicel Cup Finals

Apart from being acclaimed best team in the region, the winners will collect US$120,000 and a spot in the CONCACAF Gold Cup competition in the US.

This was revealed as Digicel launched the competition at the Terra Nova Hotel in Kingston yesterday.

This is the second year Digicel will be hosting the championships, the first of which was staged in Barbados and won by Jamaica.

Digicel yesterday vowed to make the 2006/2007 competition another grand affair.

There will first be a preliminary phase contested by 25 teams played over six groups. This first round will be hosted in six different countries in September followed by a second round and then the finals in Trinidad and Tobago starting in late January.

The final is carded for February 11.

The top three teams in the finals will then progress as representatives of the Caribbean Football Union to the CONCACAF Gold Cup.

“This year we promise to have bigger, better football,” CFU vice-president and head of marketing Captain Horace Burrell said during a question and answer segment.

This was conducted by Jamaican host Simon Crosskill who interviewed both Burrell and Digicel’s Marketing Director for the Caribbean Ben Atherton.

Barbados player Norman Forde and Jamaican Jermaine Taylor were also guests. However Soca Warriors World Cup defender Cyd Gray had to withdraw from the function late due to an invitation for trials in the the UK.

A dance presentation, the Digicel Girls and kids involved in the entertainment also made a big impression.

“Digicel is affording us the opportunity to play international football in our countries in the region and this will go a long way towards the development of the game.

“Some of these countries have never hosted international competitions,” Burrell added.

In addition to the first prize, several attractive individual awards will be at stake for the players.

Atherton said his company didn’t fear the competition of the Stanford Twenty/20 cricket tournament in terms of the cash incentives offered.

“Stanford is very interested in cricket and we welcome his tournament. We welcome more support for the cricket as well,” Atherton said.

“The Caribbean deserves an international football tournament that matches the prestige of similar international events and we are delighted to have worked in partnership with the CFU in expanding and enhancing the Digicel Caribbean Cup to provide fans and players the opportunity to enjoy more international football on home turf than ever before,” he said.

He said that Digicel’s aim is to create a uniquely Caribbean football experience at all the matches with pre-match entertainment, giveaways and cash prize competitions.

The Digicel official said there will be opportunities for fans to feel that they are part of the game.

“Once finalised, we look forward to announcing our plans for the group matches and finals,” he said.

Despite being unable to attend due to the ongoing Under-16 Cup in Trinidad and Tobago, CONCACAF and CFU President Jack Warner also expressed his delight with the run of events so far.

“This promises to be a very exciting and action-packed tournament which will go a very long way in the uplifting of football in this region. There is a lot more for all the countries to look forward to,” Warner noted.

The prizes for the tournament, all presented by Digicel includes a first prize of US$120,000 with US$70,000, US$50,000 and US$30,000 for the second, third and forth placed teams.

Each host country for the preliminary stages will also receive a subsistence package of US$20,000 and the hosts of the Finals get US$150,000 to assist with the running of the matches.

Preliminary Groups

(Host nation listed first)

Group “A” — (September 6-10) Netherlands Antilles, Guyana, Grenada, Suriname

Group “B”— (September 20-24) Antigua, St Kitts/Nevis, Barbados, Anguilla

Group “C”— (September 26-30) US Virgin Islands, Dominican Republic, Bermuda, BVI

Group “D”— (September 26-October 1) Jamaica, Haiti, St Lucia, St Vincent/Grenadines

Group “E”— (September 2-6) Cuba, Cayman Islands, Bahamas, Turks and Caicos

Group “F”— (September 20-24) Guadeloupe, St Martin, Martinique Dominca

The second round will involve the top two teams from each group competing in four groups and will be contested during October/November 2006 at venues to be announced.