THIS one’s for the children and the sport.
Alaska Milk continues its advocacy of helping children learn positive values through an active healthy lifestyle by holding the 21st Alaska Football Cup at the Alabang Country Club in Ayala Alabang Village this weekend.
The Alaska Football Cup is the biggest grassroots development competition in the country with over 4,000 athletes representing close to 400 teams from all over the Philippines participating.
Players as young as six years old will gather once again at the Ayala Alabang Village football field to participate in the longest-running and most successful nationwide competition in local football.
“This marks another monumental event for Alaska. We will have football players from all over the Philippines together in one venue, all united by their love for football. It is with great pride that we witness how the Alaska Sports Program has engaged young athletes into this kind of culture, and how they live by the values inherent in sports,” said Wilfred Uytengsu, President and CEO of Alaska Milk Corporation.
The annual Alaska Milk Football Cup allows children to participate in sports like football. But other than just football skills children also learn discipline, hard work, determination, teamwork and sportsmanship through their training.
This year’s Alaska Football Cup follows closely the quest of the Philippine national football team the Azkals to advance to the semifinals of the Asean Football Federation’s Suzuki Cup.
The Azkals narrowly missed accomplishing that goal after suffering a heartbreaking 0-1 loss to Thailand last Friday night in home territory at the Philippine Arena in Bocaue, Bulacan. With the loss the Azkals failed to tally their fourth consecutive appearance in the semifinals of the AFF Suzuki Cup.
The Azkals seemed on the way to a scoreless draw against the Thailand War Elephants until Thailand’s Sarawut Masuk broke free late in the match to slot the winning goal past Filipino keeper Roland Mueller.
The Azkals failed to exploit their home court advantage to bow out. Still the interest in the competition was sky high with games broadcast live to a wide national audience.
School teams and football clubs from Masbate, Baguio, Negros Occidental, Cebu, Davao, Palawan, Legaspi, Laguna, Batangas, Bukidnon, Zambales, Pampanga, Tarlac, Ilocos, Bicol, Romblon, Davao Sur, Compostela Valley, Quezon, Cavite, Albay, Pangasinan, Bacolod, Iloilo, Mindoro and Metro Manila will converge in Alabang to participate in the event.
The Alaska Football Cup hopes to wean children from passive activities such as watching television, surfing the Internet, or spending too much time on social media. Alaska Milk encourages children to go out and play in sports like football as an active alternative and avoid a sedentary lifestyle.
The National Nutrition Survey of the Food and Nutrition Research Institute (FNRI) said health issues are best addressed by adopting an active lifestyle along with a healthy diet and regular drinking of milk, at least twice daily.
Alaska Milk hopes to develop the athletic and social skills of children through participation in sports tournaments. These programs allow children to experience healthy competition among members of the same age group which boosts physical and mental development.
For more information about Alaska Milk visit www.alaskamilk.com. For general information about the 21st Alaska Football Cup visit www.alaskapowercamp.com/football; and for live updates follow PlayPH on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
