SPORTS MINISTER Portia Simpson Miller captured the essence of the magnificent gesture by Red Stripe in supporting the Reggae Boyz when she said:"Who can place a monetary value on what Jamaica has gained from having the Reggae Boyz as a focal point for national unity and as a free advertisement for the brand Jamaica!"
The Minister was in effect recalling the heady days of the Road to France when the bumper crowds at the National Stadium cheered on the national football team to the first ever entry by an English-speaking Caribbean side in the World Cup finals, 1998.
The evocation of national spirit at that time was unprecedented. We believe the memory of it drives the current fan support, hoping for another successful journey to the peak event of world football.
Thus Red Stripe, combining patriotic commitment with business acumen, makes the case that the purchase of a bottle of beer means a dollar donated to the qualifying campaign to reach World Cup 2006 in Germany.
The cash-strapped Jamaica Football Federation is obviously ecstatic at this injection of financial support as the new administration will be keen to match the success of the Burrell administration.
The support will facilitate staging of the friendly preparatory games at home and abroad, which in turn should generate good returns. Capacity crowds at the National Stadium indicate that the fans will turn out both in the spirit of patriotism and in anticipation of high quality football.
In this connection it is noteworthy that on the first day of the third Test match between West Indies and England in Barbados, English spectators outnumbered locals at Kensington Oval. This is obviously a reflection of diminished fan support because of the decline in West Indies performance in cricket.
We hope that the Reggae Boyz will do better than the Windies; and, cheered on by Red Stripe plus faithful and sober fans, will pursue a successful Road to Germany.
