New Global FC management bails out on team
MANILA, Philippines – One day after the Games and Amusements Board asked embattled Philippines Football League side Global FC to explain within 10 days of their backlog in terms of wages to their players — some reaching over a staggering million pesos, the team’s new owners, Mazinyi Management, have bailed out via a crude WhatsApp message last Sunday, August 9.
Filipino-Briton Peter Varley, Filipino-German Andy Esswein and Japanese player Ryo Fuji reached out to this writer, sharing screenshots of Mazinyi Management’s “departure” as well as conversations that depicted numerous promises to the players and coaching staff.
The footballers forwarded a message from Danish Atari — who Varley described as being a part of Mazinyi Management and who often addressed their salary situation —in their chat group that bared the terrible news.
Wrote Atari under the name “Danish Global,” “Apologies for our silence but we have been going over everything over the (past few) weeks and have decided that due to problem Mark (Jarvis, the club’s previous owner) has caused, our investment won’t be happening. It has come to our attention all paperwork and etc. provided to us due to the old administration. The contracts signed don’t have full names (aren’t valid) and due to the stress caused on all, we have decided to pull out. Mark is still the owner and responsible for all payments etc. as your lawyers will tell you. Wish (sic) u all the best on all your future endeavours.”
Following the message, Atari and Mazinyi left the chat room leaving one of the Mazinyi partners, Angus McDonald, who is reportedly hardly online.
Philstar.com reached out to Jarvis, who provided a copy of the contract between the Mazinyi group and himself that is supposedly have been agreed and signed on last January 11, 2020.
Jarvis reached out to Mathew Yohana, who was assigned by the Mazinyi group as Global FC’s General Manager, but according to the former, the latter “doesn’t know much what’s going on either.”
Varley related how following a stint in Bangkok, Thailand with Siam FC, Global invited him to train with them a few weeks before the end of the last PFL season. “I was offered a spot in the team the next season (2020-21) and they were bigging it up telling me ‘they have a big investor for next season’ and assured me that the club would be run well because I was hesitant to accept considering their history and also (Siam) was expecting me back for the next season.”
“I weighed my options and decided to stay here and play with Global because I don’t have to worry about Visa problems and the players the team was signing looked great. The money they promised was better as well. I also wanted to make a name for myself in my mother’s home country and help grow the game as best as I can.”
Through screenshots in their group chats on What’s App with Tami Mazinyi, the new owner repeatedly made promises about travel arrangements for players flying from overseas, their wages coming in, how they would move to the Clark Stadium as their home field, how they would be sent new football boots, and training schedules.
In one conversation, Mazinyi said that the team would practice at the Nomads pitch on March 9 — two days before the Enhanced Community Quarantine. However, when the players arrived at the Nomads pitch in Merville, they were shocked to see that it wasn’t booked at all. The players had to chip in just to be able to practice.
When he was repeatedly pressed by the players to follow through on commitments and promises, Mazinyi pointed to Jarvis. “I understand the frustration, but what you need to understand is everything that has been said has been a fact and there haven’t been any excuses here as I am tired of hearing that word.”
Behind all the promises, the players also provided screenshots sent from Jarvis where Mazinyi repeatedly made derogatory remarks and racist comments.
Esswein, whose mother hails from Daet, Camarines Sur, corroborated Varley’s statement, “Tami’s told us numerous times — and we have the chat and messages to prove it — that our salary has been sent. But he provided us with fake receipts and deposit slips. When we questioned him about it, he would say, “the money hasn’t been cleared by the bank.’”
The players produced the supposed receipts that look very much like one another with serial numbers suspiciously left out.
The mess Global FC finds itself in has left players not only jobless but also penniless. Many like English footballer John Cofie, who came up from Manchester United’s Football Academy, resigned from their jobs last January while waiting for their paperwork and plane tickets to Manila.
Some, whose wages date back to the previous year, have seen their bank accounts frozen and or even kicked out of apartments for non-payment of fees. Fuji told of a teammate who said “that if this virus doesn’t kill me, starvation will.” That teammate has been bunking in with another teammate with only instant noodles to eat.”
When the said player brought his concerns to Mazinyi, the new owner coldly dismissed him by saying, “The facts are the previous owner (Mark — Mazinyi’s emphasis and not this author’s) ran the club to the ground to a level you wouldn’t imagine. There’s a virus affecting the whole world and slowing everything down which is affecting football and payments at all levels; even Ronaldo and Messi!”
“We just wanted to follow our dream of playing football,” said Esswein. “We didn’t think our dream would be a nightmare. And we just want to get paid.”
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