‘We wanted people to turn out for matches’

The absence of a live televised broadcast of the recent two-match Reggae Girlz international friendly series against Paraguay was by design, according to Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) general secretary Dennis Chung.

Jamaica split the two-game series winning 1-0 in Montego Bay last Thursday but losing 2-1 on Sunday in Kingston in the Girlz’s final window of the calendar year with preparations continuing for next summer’s FIFA Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.

Chung said that the decision to not televise the games was designed to encourage more fans to see the games in person to create the energetic atmosphere for international games that has been missing since the pandemic.

“What we wanted is for people to turn out to the matches. We appreciate that we are coming out of a pandemic and we were used to staying home and watching things. Therefore, we took the deliberate decision not to broadcast it (the games) because we want to get people in the mood of coming out again and watching the matches,” Chung told The Gleaner. “We are pretty happy with that decision because even at Montego Bay just to be in the crowd and the crowd reaction and the way that they were enjoying it, that is the sort of thing we want to bring back to football.”

It was the first time that Jamaica was playing at home since April and since they qualified for the World Cup in July. With potential opportunities for home fixtures next year before the World Cup, Chung said that not entertaining local live broadcasting could be continued for the sake of increasing fan attendance.

“The next match or two, depending on how things develop, we might make that decision not to broadcast because we want to get people coming out to the matches. We have to ensure that we approach this thing like a business. That is important for us,” Chung said.

However, the JFF has not closed the door on international broadcasting partnerships as Chung said that is an avenue they are looking towards for next year.

“We are looking at that. That is something that we will be looking at next time, in terms of broadcasting internationally whether it is the Girlz or the Boyz,” Chung said.

The Reggae Girlz are finalising plans to compete in a tournament in Australia next February as part of their World Cup preparations.They will be getting an opportunity to play in the co-host nation five months before the tournament begins. They will play their entire group schedule in Australia with games in Sydney, Perth and Melbourne.

daniel.wheeler@gleanerjm.com