Major partnerships with top clubs in the English Premier League in England and the MLS in the United States are currently being sought aggressively by local T&T Pro League outfit Central FC.
As such, his club has had to find ways to generate income, apart from their loyal sponsors Bankers Insurance Company which he described as family.
Yesterday Sancho said his club was also seeking major investments from clubs and international investors in a move to soften the impact of the recession currently being experienced. Due to this, subventions of $83,000 which were given by the Sport Company of T&T to eight of the ten clubs in the pro league have been withheld and this has led to many clubs admitting they will close their doors if this trend continues.
Central FC, which is only in its fourth year existence, has generated well over $10 million from private funding and according to Sancho his clubs does not only provide a means of football to youngsters but also a way of life. He explained that these partnerships would bhelp in nurturing and developing talent at his team and would prepare players to make a transition from local football to top flight professional football with major clubs in the English premiership and the MLS.
Sancho, a former minister of sport under the People’s Partnership Government, did not disclose any of the names of the clubs, as he said they were still deep in talks at this point in time. However, he said the main thing was that the clubs were willing to invest and his club would be looking at all facets of their investment.
He lashed out at his detractors, saying there were people who were against him because of his short stint in politics. But he sent a message to them, saying: “You all can hate Brent Sancho if you want to, but don’t hate the many young men who the club saves daily through their involvement in the sport of football.”
Only recently, Kevin Harrison, the club’s operations officer told the T&T Guardian that his club was in the process of forming a football academy that will cater for the top young footballers at schools in T&T and the Caribbean. He explained that this academy would provide an avenue for young budding footballers to showcase their talents and skills to a number of international scouts from the United Kingdom and through-out Europe, with an aim of getting a trial or contract.
Meanwhile Sancho also addressed the firing of their coach Ross Russell recently, saying his team needed a change for it to move forward.
Russell, the former national and Defence Force coach was sacked after a series of poor results in the TT Pro League. Sancho yesterday described Russell as a good coach who will do well in the future.