With the opening of its third division series last weekend, the third Terry Razon Copa Filipina Championship is now the biggest ongoing football tournament in Metro Manila, organizers said yesterday.
“We opened with 16 teams in the third division last Sunday, raising to a total of 36 football clubs competing in the event, the biggest participation in a football tournament, ” said Mon Jose, secretary general of the organizing National Capital Region Football Association, in yesterday’s PSA forum at the Shakey’s UN Avenue branch in Manila.
Jose said that the third division opens a venue for recreational and weekend football players to compete actively even if only during weekends.
“The third division provides an opportunity for these players to compete in the spirit of camaraderie and sportsmanship. There are still a lot of them who still want to play but cannot keep up with the younger players. This is for them,” Jose said in the session sponsored by Shakey’s, Accel, Brickroad gym and Aspen spa and MedCentral Medical Clinic and Diagnostic Center.
Jose added that besides the third division, there are 12 squads in the second division and another 10 in the first division, which feature powerhouse sides such as Ateneo, La Salle, Air Force, Navy, and, of course, Kaya.