MVP Cup making waves overseas

With a format like golf’s Ryder Cup where continents are matched against each other instead of countries, the MVP Cup is becoming more and more known as one of the world’s premier badminton tournaments.

This year’s edition was clearly an improved version of the first-ever MVP Cup held at the PhilSports Arena last July. It featured better TV coverage (with a live feed to England, Singapore, Malaysia, China, Russia and many other countries), better players from Europe and Asia, better venue, better scoring system (making a fast game even faster with the rally point rule) and better hours of play (attracting the weekend crowd).

A problem encountered by players in last year’s debut MVP Cup was the air-conditioning draft that affected the flight of the shuttlecock during matches. Organizers shut off the air-conditioning to allow unencumbered flight but players and spectators complained of the heat inside the arena.

With the move to the Araneta Coliseum, the problem was addressed. Former national coach Nelson Asuncion, whose children Kennie and Kennevic are fixtures in mixed doubles for Asia in the MVP Cup, gave his thumbs-up after a court test where he checked if the air-conditioning would alter the drift of the shuttlecock.

The shift to the Big Dome was also precipitated by the overflow crowd that packed the PhilSports Arena last year. Some 5,000 tickets were sold for each of the three playing days this year as organizers blocked off the general admission and upper box level B because there is little visibility from those sections anyway.

The natural people traffic in Cubao was another factor taken into consideration in the choice to transfer to a larger venue.

PLDT chairman Manny Pangilinan, the MVP Cup’s prime mover, said the tournament — classified in sports parlance as a "friendly" because it earns no ranking points for players — will likely evolve into a vital component of the global badminton circuit or it could trigger a yearly alternate hosting of the event with Europe.

A possible scenario is to transform the MVP Cup into a bigger and more lucrative Philippine Open where players may gain ranking and qualifying points for the Olympics or World Championships.

One thing for sure, the world’s top shuttlers look forward to playing in the MVP Cup.

This year, the prize money was increased from $80,000 to $100,000 with Team Europe, the winning side, taking 60 percent of the pot. But it’s not just the money that draws badminton’s big names to the MVP Cup. The foreign players are treated royally here and enjoy the Filipino hospitality so much they’ve made the MVP Cup a priority in their calendar.

"It’s all about treatment," said Princess Galura of the International Management Group (IMG) which conceptualized the MVP Cup. "Players play only a match each in three days unless they’re chosen to play in the men’s and women’s singles matches as captain’s picks on the third day and they get a share of the prize money whether they win or lose. More than that, they enjoy the camaraderie and the Philippines is a beautiful place to visit."