Fund-raiser launched for TT Warriors

THE Telecommunica-tions Services of Trinidad and Tobago (TSTT) in conjunction with the Trinidad and Tobago Football Federation (TTFF) yesterday launched a project designed to raise some nine million dollars to assist the national football team in their quest to qualify for the Germany 2006 World Cup. Titled “Mission: $1 Million by June 4, 2005,” the campaign was launched at TSTT House, Edward Street, Port-of-Spain. Present were TSTT vice-president (Marketing) Ian Thrush; special adviser to the TTFF and FIFA vice president Austin “Jack” Warner and Rhonda Lee Yhapp of TSTT’s Marketing department.

Thrush said the nine million dollars total, will go towards funding the team’s extensive preparation programme for their remaining World Cup qualifying games. “This funding is also essential if the team is to successfully complete their World Cup Qualifying Campaign,” Thrush said. “When TSTT announced its ‘Journey to Germany’ campaign and its intention to work with the TTFF and local organising committee last year, we believed in our team’s chances of qualifying for the World Cup.” He said TSTT’s customers can help raise funds for the “Warriors” by using the company’s SMS Service.

“In a nutshell, this SMS promotion gives every TSTT mobile customer the opportunity to help build a winning team and send the ‘Warriors’ to Germany,” he added. “Mobile customers can simply send the text message, ‘GO TEAM’ to GOAL (4625). Each SMS costs $1 (plus VAT). If every mobile customer sends just two text messages before each of the remaining qualifying matches, we’ll reach our goal of TT nine million dollars,” Thrush added.

TSTT, he said, was also offering the chance for two mobile customers to win an all expense paid trip to the Germany 2006 World Cup Final to see the “Warriors” in action. Warner commended TSTT for their faith in the TT “Warriors.” He said TSTT’s initiative was timely since the campaign for the “Journey to Germany,” was costing in the region of $21M. He then lashed out at corporate Trinidad and Tobago for falling asleep as far as sponsorship for the national football team was concerned. “Apart from TSTT and to a lesser extent two other companies, football and in particular our World Cup efforts, would have been hopeless strangers to these efforts,” Warner said.

“It is no secret that the cost of going to Germany 2006 for Trinidad and Tobago has been put at TT$21 million. By comparative standards, this is about US$3.5 million. That is the US budget per month. It is ours for three years,” the FIFA vice president added. He said TT has been spending the least out of the six Concacaf countries in terms of match preparation and budgeting for its national team. Warner thanked TSTT for the current fund-raising efforts and for what they have done for national football in the past. “There’s no way we can succeed without the collective efforts of everyone and if ever there was a time when a collective effort was needed, it is now.”