PVL stays committed with ABS – for now
MANILA, Philippines — While other leagues with tie-ups with ABS CBN’s sports channel Sports + Action now reconsidering their options, the Premier Volleyball League said it remains committed to the beleaguered TV station.
“Until we hear from (ABS-CBN) that they can’t cover us, we’ll keep our commitment to them,” said Ricky Palou, president of Sports Vision, which organizes the PVL.
The league, then known as the V-League, moved to Sports+Action in 2016 after years of airing (on delayed basis) on GMA News TV.
It has successfully put up a three-conference offering the last four years until the coronavirus pandemic put a stop to its 2020 season along with the other sporting leagues.
Congress, however, thumbed down the network’s franchise bid last week, leaving the fate of the country’s top sports leagues, including the UAAP, the NCAA and the MPBL (Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League), hanging as far as their respective TV coverages are concerned.
For the PVL, however, Palou said it doesn’t matter if ABS-CBN would air their games either online or through a block time with another network.
This developed as the MPBL said it is now looking for a new home after partnering with ABS-CBN S+A for its first four seasons.
Unlike the UAAP and NCAA, the MPBL is a blocktimer, meaning it buys airtime to telecast its games.
The S+A channel also airs mixed martial arts events such as the ONE Championship and the Beach Volleyball Republic.
The UAAP, on the other hand, is actually in the middle of renewal talks with ABS-CBN after its five-year pact expired last May 31 although the country’s premier collegiate cage league hinting at exploring talks with other parties.
Meanwhile, the NCAA, which still has five years left in its contract with ABS-CBN, is on a wait-and-see mode.
“We’re waiting for ABS-CBN sports on their options in the NCAA coverage,” said NCAA Management Committee chair Fr. Vic Calvo, OP, of Season 96 host Letran.
If the COVID-19 situation is contained, Calvo said they are planning to start the league early next year with four mandatory sports – basketball, volleyball, athletics and swimming with esports and chess added to the list, regardless of the broadcasting concerns.
“The league will push through in the worst-case scenario,” said Calvo.
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