‘It’s a huge deal’
JFF president highlights magnanimity of Jamaica clash against Messi-led Argentina
Published:Thursday | August 25, 2022 | 12:09 AM
Michael Ricketts, president of the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF), said that the Reggae Boyz friendly international against Argentina next month is a massive opportunity for the Reggae Boyz to showcase their talent against some of the best players in the world.
The match will take place at the Red Bull Arena in New Jersey, starting at 8 p.m. and the Argentines, who are ranked third in the world, will be led by the likes of Lionel Messi, Angel Di Maria, Rodrigo de Paul, Paulo Dybala, and Giovanni Lo Celso.
“It is a huge deal for us,” said Ricketts. “For us to be rubbing shoulders with Lionel Messi is every player’s dream, and we were intent on getting some of these high-profile games,” said Ricketts.
“The {Lionel} Messi fans will get the opportunity to see one of the finest footballers in the world,” Ricketts added.
The JFF boss pointed out that his organisation had to work very hard to secure the game and that this would be their strategy going forward to secure a lot more high-profile internationals for the Reggae Boyz.
“We signed a contract with Argentina, and this game, of course, will be played at the Red Bull Arena in New Jersey on September 27,” said Ricketts. “We wanted to get some of these high-profile games, and it took some hard work, but the end result is that we were able to sign the contract, and the game is definitely on.”
The JFF president added that the match would be played on a FIFA date and the Reggae Boyz’ best players would be available for selection.
BIG GAME
“It is a FIFA date, and barring injuries, I think that the best players will be available for us because this is a very big game and we want to put on an excellent showing for the country,” Ricketts said.
The Reggae Boyz were beaten 1-0 by Argentina in their last meeting at the Copa Centennial Championship in 2015.
Ricketts expressed a hope that this game would also help to attract more international sponsors to the JFF.
“We are just hopeful that we will have some positive spin-offs,” said Ricketts.
“We have been able to sign a contract with adidas, which really should change the whole landscape of football in the country, and we are intent on getting other international sponsors on board because that is the ambition of the JFF, to try to get overseas sponsors to supplement our local sponsors.”
The JFF recently signed a four-year kit sponsorship deal with adidas, which will take effect on January 1, 2023.