PFL action kicks off next month

MANILA, Philippines — Pinoy football action returns with the staging of the Philippines Football League’s Copa Paulino Alcantara next month at the PFF National Training Center in Carmona, Cavite.

The competition set Nov. 7-19 under a “closed-circuit biomedical bubble” will serve as the PFL’s lone offering for 2021 with the centerpiece league tournament pushed back to next year.

“As much as we would have wanted to stage the PFL season, certain key conditions were not met, which forced us to defer the league season for next year,” said Philippine Football Federation president Nonong Araneta. “We are one with the fans who miss football being played in the country during this pandemic.”

The PFF is eyeing to hold the PFL’s full season in the first quarter of 2022.

The Copa Paulino Alcantara, which was last held in 2019, will feature six clubs split in two groups of three for the group stages. The top two from each group will then advance to the knockout semifinal matches with the winners contesting the Cup and the losers battling for third place.

“The staging of the Cup is the PFF’s commitment to provide a proper and intense football competition and livelihood to all stakeholders, particularly the players and officials,” said PFF general secretary Ed Gastanes. “With Cavite slowly easing their quarantine restrictions and the reaffirmation from the clubs to compete in the Cup, we expect a thrilling competition.”