The Philippine Football Federation is glad that the Joint Administrative Order by the Department of Health, Games and Amusements Board, and the Philippine Sports Commission for the resumption of practices for pro sports was finally signed on Monday.
“We thank the Games and Amusements Board, chaired by Mr. Abraham Mitra, Philippine Sports Commission, led by Chairman William Ramirez, and the Department of Health, under Secretary Hon Francisco Duque III, for signing the JAO which allows professional teams to train,” said PFF president Mariano Araneta, Jr. in a statement.
“We look forward to the clubs to prepare for the PFL 2020 season.”
“The Joint Administrative Order (JAO) has officially allowed PFL teams to conduct training sessions,” PFF general secretary Atty. Edwin Gastanes added.
“This will ensure that the players will be match fit once actual PFL matches are given the green light.”
The PFF, like the PBA, submitted its own set of protocols for the resumption of Philippines Football League club teams’ practices to the Inter-Agency Task Force. It received approval, but had to wait first for the JAO signing before proceeding.
Now that the go-signal has been given, PFL teams can now get back to work. The PFF National Training Center inside the San Lazaro Leisure and Business Park in Carmona, Cavite will serve as the training venue for all participating PFL teams
There are currently six listed club teams for the 2020 season of the country’s top-flight football league — Global-Makati, Kaya-Iloilo, Mendiola, Stallion Laguna, the Azkals Development Team, and United City Football Club, formerly Ceres-Negros.
The PFL was supposed to raise the curtains of its fourth season last March, but the government put Luzon under enhanced community quarantine in the same month as part of its efforts in battling the novel coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
In anticipation of the teams’ training sessions, the PFF and PFL conducted RT-PCR/Swab Testing last July 8 at PFF Headquarters. A total of 155 individuals were tested negative. A second RT-PCR test will be conducted in the coming days for PFL players and officials who have yet to be tested.
