NCAA, UAAP going off air? Sports affected by ABS-CBN shutdown

MANILA, Philippines — Philippine sports, already reeling from the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, stands to suffer more in post-COVID-19 days if the ABS-CBN shutdown issue won’t be resolved and dragged for a long time.

The television giant, through its UHF Channel Sports + Action, is home to a number of the country’s top leagues, including the UAAP, the NCAA and the Premier Volleyball League. It also telecasts big mixed martial arts fights in the ONE Championship and has been the MPBL’s (Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League) carrying station since its inaugurals in early 2018.

“The worst thing that can happen as far as the NCAA is concerned is that there will be no television coverage,” Fr. Vic Calvo, OP, of Season 96 host Letran, told The STAR.

“But the fight is not yet over. The league will push through even in the worst-case scenario,” he added.

Meanwhile, Far Eastern U board representative Mark Molina said ABS-CBN has been a very reliable partner of the UAAP for decades.

“ABS-CBN has been a great partner of the league for 20 years. I hope they come out of this stronger and resume broadcasting soon,” said Molina.

Ricky Palou, president of Sports Vision which organizes the PVL, also felt bad about the development but stressed that looking for other stations didn’t cross that of the board members’ minds.

“It’s a long term commitment. We want to hear from them (ABS-CBN) first before making any major decision. Maybe they have other plans for us,” said Palou, adding that the two camps are on their fourth year of partnership out of a five-year pact.

“Just because they were shut down doesn’t necessarily mean we would be leaving,” he said.

ABS-CBN, which has been showing past UAAP, NCAA and MPBL games and MMA fights during the extended lockdown, went off the air Tuesday night following the National Telecommunications Commission’s cease and desist order due to the expiry of its legislative franchise.