JFF determined
Chung, Ricketts take aim at maximising Brand Jamaica
Published:Thursday | February 23, 2023 | 12:54 AMDaniel Wheeler/Staff Reporter
ACKNOWLEDGING THE failures in capitalising on Jamaica’s brand power in sports, Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) General Secretary Dennis Chung said the foundation that is being built with national senior men’s head coach Heimir Hallgrimsson will help to rectify such mistakes as the country continues to roll out their new partnership with sports brand Adidas.
Chung was speaking on Tuesday at a press conference at JFF headquarters which served to unveil locally the new 2023-24 home and away jerseys for the national teams.
It was also used to announce the upcoming international friendlies for the Reggae Boyz, which include a two-game series against Trinidad and Tobago on March 4 and 11, before their March 26 Concacaf Nations League tilt against Mexico.
Admitting past shortcomings when partnering with major brands, Chung said the platform being built will help Jamaica to properly maximise the opportunity that the Adidas deal presents them.
“We have not, as a country, taken advantage of many of our brands. Not just sports, but music, for example; tourism also. I have done a lot of analysis over the years in different capacities and I think the reason for that (echoing coach Heimir Hallgrimsson) is because we are trying to develop football, but we don’t have the foundation,” Chung said.
“So what we plan to do is to develop the foundations, so the whole thing that you heard about disorganisation in the past, we are trying to eliminate that. Just like [with] the under-17 team, we had an issue; judge us by how quickly we recover from it.”
The issue Chung speaks about was an administration foul up that led to 14 players having to travel to the Concacaf Under-17 Championships a day later than scheduled. The structure of the national programme is also something Chung aims to amend as well, beginning with improving the coaching qualification standards. Achieving improvement there is something that has been tasked to JFF Technical Committee Chairperson Rudolph Speid.
“We are not going to have to have people do the course and they are gods the next day. It is just like when you are leaving university. It is going to take some time and some experience. We are trying to build from the root up. And the role of the JFF is important, which we are trying to build. It takes time, but we are going to get there,” Chung said.
JFF President Michael Ricketts says that with the structural changes and the new Adidas deal, they are determined to meet their targets.
“This is no ordinary partnership. It has taken the JFF three years to fully influence and convince our partners that we are in a position to work closely with you and to ensure that as part of a contractual arrangement, each party get its pound of flesh,” Ricketts said.
“It is incumbent on us now, as the leaders of football, to ensure that our partnerships get what they deserve from this investment. It is going to be tough, but we are intent on getting things right.”
Chung said he is pleased with the reception of the new national kits, and confirmed that the JFF will get a percentage on all international sales.