MARIKINA CITY, Philippines – “Aside from being home of the Azkals, Marikina will be an ideal venue for the annual Smart National Football Championships.”
This was the assessment of Patrick Gregorio, vice president for sports of Smart Communications during an ocular inspection of the football field of the Marikina Sports Park.
Mayor Del de Guzman and Rep. Miro Quimbo are requesting Smart CEO Manuel V. Pangilinan to sponsor the cost of rehabilitating the field which Azkals manager Dan Palami estimated at P4 million.
“We would need the formal cost estimate from your contractor before we can approve the disbursement in exchange for naming rights like Smart-Marikina Football Field for a period of 5 to 10 years,” said Gregorio, who was also appointed recently as Maynilad senior vice president.
Gregorio also advised Marikina officials to bid for the Smart National Football Championships which will kick off sometime June this year. The format will be nationwide with participating teams having home and away games. Gregorio said Marikina can be the venue for the Metro Manila games and national championships.
“This will be good for Marikina since the games will be year-round and held annually thereon. This will further strengthen our positioning as the Home of the Azkals and as Sports Capital,” said De Guzman.