Sherwin Williams' Managing Director, Ian Forbes (left), shares a word with secretary/manager of Eclipse, Audrey Phillips, and Jamaica Football Federation President Crenston Boxhill during a press conference to launch the Women's League at the JFF offices yesterday. - PHOTO BY DARAINE LUTON
SHERWIN WILLIAMS has remained true to its three-year sponsorship deal with the Jamaica Football Federation's (JFF) Women's League and has offered up a deal worth $1.945 million for this season.
The announcement of continued sponsorship was made yesterday at the JFF offices in New Kingston during a press conference that announced tomorrow's start to the season.
According to JFF General Secretary Burchell Gibson, the administration costs of running the league this season will be high.
The payment of referees, in what will be two leagues and three competitions, will amount to about $580,000. The paying of match commissaries, scheduled to be at all games, will come up to $140,000, while presentations and awards will cost $130,000.
The administrative costs outside of all that will amount to $100,000.
The league itself will have a new format as it will now be a Sherwin Williams Premier League and an 'A' League, under the concept that prevails in the men's game where the teams at the bottom of the table at the end of the Premier League season will be relegated.
The Premier League will feature eight teams, while the same number will face off in the 'A' League.
There will be no play-offs to make the Premier League this time around as the top two teams from the 'A' League will be given automatic promotions to what is the top women's league in the country.
AWARDS
There will be a $150,000 prize for winning the Premier League, while second place will be $100,000, third place have $50,000 waiting for them, and fourth place will take home $45,000, respectively. There are also awards for making it to the mid-season final, with cash incentives of $20,000 and $30,000 for the runner-up and the winner, respectively.
In the 'A' League, the winner will walk home with $75,000 while second place will be $50,000 richer. Third place walks home with $40,000 while there is a $30,000 prize affixed to placing fourth.
There will also be a team award for fair play and a number of individual cash prizes for the coach of the season, winning captain, Most Valuable Player (MVP) of the season and of the finals, as well as $25,000 scholarship awards to one player from each of the leagues.
For the first time there will also be a knockout competition that will attract Sherwin Williams' latest brand and will be called the Sherwin Williams Colourscape Knockout.
In speaking about Sherwin Williams' latest commitment, Managing Director Ian Forbes spoke about the reason for choosing the women's league.
"We feel it is our duty to assist anybody who will change the way we look at women," said Forbes, after talking about moral decay within the society that women played an integral part in correcting.
In the same vein, JFF President Crenston Boxhill said he was grateful for Sherwin Williams' support.
"As a country we cannot perpetrate the opinion that football is a male sport," he said. "Praises for Sherwin Williams cannot be too high because Jamaica's landscape makes corporate entities not keen to support women's sports."
