Allianz aims to promote "Diversity in Football" with Sugod Malaya FC

The Sugod Malaya U16 squad with Mr. Mark Angos, Secretary General, Sugod Malaya FC (standing, far left) and Ms. Josephine Bulilan, Sales Manager for North Metro Manila Region, Allianz PNB Life (standing, far right)

Allianz remains committed in its support for the sport of football in the country, with their most recent endeavour of having supported the exploits of grassroots side Sugod Malaya FC in their recent competitions.

According to Allianz Philippines Chief Marketing Officer Gae Martinez, "Globally, Allianz is known to be a staunch supporter of football, and we want to promote that same passion here in the Philippines. When Sugod Malaya came to us for help, we immediately saw that they are an organization that represents our goals and ideals for the sport—that it’s not just a game to be played by a few, but by all."

A non-profit football club established six years ago, Sugod Malaya has close to three hundred active members that span the entire financial spectrum, from the well-to-do to the poorest of the poor. Co-Founder and current Sugod Malaya Secretary-General Mark Duane Angos shares, "When we started, our dream was to establish a club that is really free, regardless of whatever the player’s background is."

He adds, "We were forming a team back then and realized that it lacked diversity. At that time, I was doing a community outreach program for San Beda and got in touch with folks in Tondo." Mark noted that football in the Philippines is perceived as a sport for the rich, something that the club intends to change.

That connection with Tondo allowed them to eventually get four kids from the area, which helped complete their team that participated in a tournament in Bacolod, one of the premier football hotbeds in the country. Angos notes, "When they played in Bacolod, they really played well together.

From being a football club, Sugod Malaya eventually evolved into being a community development tool, with over half of the current club membership comes from impoverished backgrounds, thirty to forty percent of which is being categorized as part of the "poorest of the poor.". From relying on generous donations, according to Angos, "It is now a club that provides an opportunity for kids from all backgrounds to play and, at the same time, have their talent seen and discovered by the global community."

The club has also managed to participate in overseas youth competitions, like the Borneo Cup in Malaysia and the Singa Cup in Singapore. They also even managed to play in Europe, having participated in the Mediterranean Cup in Barcelona, where they competed against the likes of the fabled La Masia of FC Barcelona.

The idea of being able to participate in overseas competition was thought to be a pipe dream, until the entry of the likes of Allianz came in.

Mark notes, "We knew, from the perspective of cost, that Barcelona would be too much even though its organizers were nice enough to give us partial subsidy. At some point, we thought of backing out because we felt that participating in one tournament might affect our entire program—we have a team playing in Europe and getting that experience, but then the other scholars would be suffering because we’d run out of funds and resources. So when Allianz and like-minded individuals came in, we saw the light at the end of the tunnel." He also pointed out that "When we heard that they were willing to help us, we were excited. We are very thankful and, at the same time, excited to see that we have represented Allianz well."

Angos noted some lessons they learned from being involved in this kind of competition.

"You can see that it (playing against Barcelona) reinforced their determination," he says, adding that "In the Philippines, they would cheer for you when you make a goal. In Spain and the rest of Europe, the crowd will clap and appreciate your good pass, even if you don’t score, and when you make a good save. They can appreciate the strengths of the whole team."

Being able to participate overseas has opened the doors for Sugod Malaya to other opportunities, as it allowed them to secure invitations to play in Colombia, Ireland, and Portugal, among others, which dovetails into their goal of making Filipinos realize that "Football is a sport for Filipinos."