Wednesday, August 4 2010

THE Caribbean Football Union’s premier football tournament, the Digicel Caribbean Cup (DCC) will officially kick off on October 6 with Groups “A” and “B” doing battle in Puerto Rico and Barbados respectively.

The DCC is a biennial tournament and the winners are dubbed the undisputed Champions of the Caribbean.

The Digicel Caribbean Cup will be played from October 6 to December 5 and features 23 of the best national football teams across the region.

The tournament, which will be played in eight venues across the region, kicks off with 15 teams in Stage I.

The best six teams of the first stage qualify to the second round where they join DCC 2008 semi-finalists, Grenada, Cuba and Guadeloupe as well as three other top regional teams; Trinidad and Tobago, Antigua and Barbuda and Haiti.

The tournament finals will be held in Martinique where qualified teams will meet the host’s national team or 2008’s defending champion, Jamaica in a group stage before moving on to the Semi-finals and Final.

In 2008, Jamaica, Grenada, Cuba and Guadeloupe finished in 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th respectively.

Commenting on this year’s tournament, Head of Digicel’s Group Sponsorship Division Karl Donnelly stated, “We are delighted to be the primary sponsor of this premier Caribbean event for the third consecutive time edition.

“We have assisted the CFU in taking the event from strength to strength and believe the 2010 competition will be even better than before.

“As the major sponsor of football in the region the Digicel Caribbean Cup is an excellent fit with our brand and provides us with the opportunity to develop exciting new initiatives for our existing and new customers across the Caribbean.”

CFU president Jack Warner is expecting another competition filled with pulsating action.

“I am extremely pleased that the Caribbean nations have once again risen to this challenge. I would like to congratulate the 23 nations participating in this competition.

“This is the region’s premier football event and it is no secret that the world is keeping a closer watch and taking further interest in our region’s football and its footballers.

“This event will showcase our talent I am therefore making an appeal to all our participating members in the 2010 series to prepare properly and approach the games in a most professional manner.

“We must strive to achieve world standards in all that we do as a region we are capable of greatness, now we must transform that potential into our reality.”

Warner also commended Digicel for its continued commitment to the development of regional football.

“Digicel has grown to be one of the beautiful game’s strongest supporters in the region. The management of this company understands its corporate responsibility goes well beyond the bottom line.

“A company is judged not only on its profitability, but on its ability to assist in shaping the lives of its clients and customers. I would like to congratulate the management and staff of Digicel for all they continue to do for this sport and I look forward to their continued support.”

The top four teams in the tournament will also qualify for the CONCACAF Gold Cup.