JFF president Michael Ricketts (left) accepts a symbolic cheque from ROJ's brand manager Andrei Roper, during a press conference at JFF's offices on Wednesday. Also in photo are Reggae Girlz Rebecca Spencer (second left) and Deneisha Blackwood (third right), as well as Head coach Lorne Donaldson and JFF's Head of women's football Elaine Walker-Brown.
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The senior Reggae Girlz may be far advanced in their preparations for the FIFA Women's World Cup, but Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) president Michael Ricketts welcomed Restaurants of Jamaica's (ROJ) $7 million sponsorship as a timely injection that will ensure the Lorne Donaldson-coached team breathe much easier heading Down Under.
Ricketts believes the Girlz have not been shown enough appreciation for their historic accomplishment of qualifying for a second-consecutive World Cup but says KFC's support represents a step in the right direction and another example which he hopes other corporate companies will follow.
The one-year partnership will see KFC pumping $6 million in cash and another $1 million in products to the Reggae Girlz, who are currently in camp putting the final pieces in place ahead of the July 20 to August 20 showpiece, in Australia and New Zealand.
"We need to show far more appreciation to our Girlz and when you think of the struggles some of these players went through, the sacrifice and commitment to get a country like ours to two global tournaments consecutively, it is no ordinary achievement," Ricketts said during a press conference at JFF’s St Lucia Avenue base on Wednesday.
"So, I must recognize Mr. [Andrei] Roper and KFC for coming on board to partner with the JFF to ensure that we improve the quality of life for all these girls that constantly and consistently make us so very proud. This is something that we can gloat about and hopefully this really sends a strong signal to Jamaica as it relates to the positive and social impact that these two qualifications have on our little boys and girls," he added.
While most of their focus is currently on the World Cup, Ricketts said the Olympic Games Qualifiers against Canada in September, as well as the women's Nations League and Gold Cup, has not been lost on them, hence is call for more support.
But beyond that and despite the financial constraints, the president pointed out that his administration is intent on getting things right going forward, particularly where developing the country's football from the grassroots is concerned.
By virtue of the Girlz qualification, the JFF is assured of just over US$1.5 million from FIFA, but that figure could increase if the team goes beyond the group stage. The Girlz are drawn in Group F alongside France, Brazil and Panama.
"We are just intent on ensuring that the whole psyche of our little boys and girls are positively impacted. We struggle to meet our footballing demands when you think that we have 12 teams, six on either side of the gender, that we must take care of, it is challenging, but we are managing.
"So, I want to again mention our sponsors we had Courts last week and now KFC joining the Marley Foundation and others, but we need other corporate entities to come on board as we try to impact the social needs of the boys and girls that are interested in playing the sport," Ricketts shared.
"We must put programmes in place, and we are intent on getting a proper grassroots programme. We have a committee which is responsible for talent identification, grassroots and development, so this committee will be very active in identifying grassroots kids and having them properly harnessed and then get them in a formal setting so we can then make the transition from little kids to high school players and then inevitably, national players," the president noted.
Meanwhile, ROJ’s Brand Manager Andrei Roper explained that this partnership with the senior Reggae Girlz is an extension of that with captain and prolific goal scorer, Khadija "Bunny" Shaw.
The 26-year-old Manchester City striker, who is not in the current camp, is expected to join up with the final squad when they head to Amsterdam for a pre-tournament camp before heading to Australia.
"We really wanted to help to make the Reggae Girlz journey to the World Cup that much easier, theirs is a tremendous achievement and I don't think we fully appreciate as a nation what a huge achievement it is. They are true ambassadors for Jamaica, not just for women's sport but for brand Jamaica on a whole, so for us at KFC we pride ourselves on giving back... just supporting all those pillars of society that really represent everything positive about Jamaica," Roper affirmed.
"Women's football is an area where we did see an opportunity to really give a bit more as a brand. Last year, we started a partnership with Khadija Shaw as our big deal ambassador, so this is just a fitting extension of our relationship with Khadija, who is the face of women's football and so we are broadening our scope and partnership to the wider Reggae Girlz programme.
"So, we just want to say thanks and just to help make their preparations a bit easier because we know it’s going to be a tough group and so we want to just really make the last lap going Down Under that much easier. So great partnership for us and we are glad to be on board," he stated.
Sherdon Cowan is a five-time award-winning journalist with 10 years' experience covering sports.
Bristol City Women 0-4 Man City Women: Hosts relegated as Fowler double inspires WSL leaders
Mary Fowler scored twice to set WSL leaders Manchester City on their way to a 4-0 rout of Bristol City, who suffered relegation as a result, on Sunday.
With Arsenal having drawn with Everton earlier in the day, Man City knew a victory would be enough to take the title race down to two teams.
That victory duly arrived in emphatic fashion, with all four of Man City's goals arriving in the second half.
Fowler's fantastic strike opened the scoring in the 62nd minute, with the Australia international doubling her tally soon after, paving the way for an Amy Rodgers own goal and Alex Greenwood's late header to seal a huge victory.
Arsenal are now out of the title race, with Chelsea - who have two games in hand on Gareth Taylor's team - the only side capable of catching Man City.
The Robins, meanwhile, will be playing in the second tier again next term.
Data Debrief: Bristol heading down with a whimper
Bristol City have failed to score in their last five games in the WSL, a run of 544 minutes without a goal.
They mustered just 0.09 expected goals (xG) to Man City's 3.4, with the visitors having now kept a clean sheet in nine of their 20 league games this season.
De Rossi demands more from 'tired' Roma ahead of crunch run
Daniele De Rossi acknowledged his Roma team may be tired, but he insisted they must not allow themselves to be embarrassed.
Roma fought back to draw 2-2 with last season's Serie A champions Napoli in a pulsating fixture on Sunday.
Tammy Abraham's late header secured a point for De Rossi's team, who took the lead through Paulo Dybala's penalty before going behind to goals from Matias Olivera and Victor Osimhen.
With Serie A set to have five teams in the Champions League next season, Roma occupy fifth spot with four matches remaining, but sixth-placed Atalanta are just two points behind with a game in hand.
There is also the small matter of a Europa League semi-final against Bundesliga champions Bayer Leverkusen on the cards over the coming weeks, and De Rossi set the stall out.
"We drew, it is not a result to throw away, but it is not the result or the performance that we wanted," Roma coach Daniele De Rossi told Sky Sports Italia.
"At times you can steal the ball off Napoli, but we then gave it back again too many times. Napoli had a lot of chances in the first half, we did better in the second, but we have to do better.
"Look, we are tired, but we cannot start thinking that we’re tired and that means we can be embarrassed in the final few weeks of the season."
Roma host Leverkusen on Thursday before taking on Juventus on May 5, with a crunch clash against Atalanta – who are also into the Europa League semi-finals – set to follow after the away leg against Xabi Alonso's team.
Key to a successful end to the campaign for Roma will be keeping Dybala fit. The Argentine has been involved in the joint-most goals (12) in Serie A since the turn of the year, scoring nine and setting up three, level with Juve's Dusan Vlahovic.
PSG's latest Ligue 1 title arrives as Monaco lose to Lyon
Paris Saint-Germain have been crowned as Ligue 1 champions after Lyon overcame Monaco 3-2 on Sunday.
A 4-1 midweek win over Lorient ensured that one more victory would be enough for Luis Enrique's team to get over the line, but PSG failed to get the job done themselves when they faced relegation-threatened Le Havre on Saturday.
That game was the 700th match of the QSI era at PSG, and the club's 1,900th in France's top flight.
However, PSG's wait to win their third straight title did not last long, as less than 24 hours later, Lyon – who will face the Parisians in the final of the Coupe de France at the end of May – came out on top in a topsy turvy encounter with second-placed Monaco.
Substitute Malick Fofana was the matchwinner for Lyon, and ultimately the player who handed the title to PSG.
Wissam Ben Yedder had put Monaco ahead in the opening minute, but quickfire goals from Alexandre Lacazette and Said Benrahma turned the match on its head before half-time.
Ben Yedder netted his second to restore parity on the hour mark, and thought he had sealed his hat-trick when he volleyed in from a free-kick, only to have strayed offside.
With only a win good enough for Monaco to stay in the fight, the visitors were then caught out in the 84th minute, with Fofana racing onto Lacazette's throughball and finishing calmly.
After a dismal start to the season, relegation looked a real possibility for Lyon, but they are now, with three games remaining, still in with a shout of qualifying for Europe.
PSG on the other hand now have 12 Ligue 1 titles to their name, with 10 of those coming under QSI's ownership. Aside from the COVID-impacted 2019-20 season, five of their last six league titles have been secured before the start of May.
It also means Luis Enrique remains in the running for a treble in his first season at the club, with PSG taking on Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League semi-finals next week.
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