For the last few years, video sharing platform YouTube has been a major revenue generator for a number of sports teams around the world and the latest initiative by the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) has them looking to join in on that.

On Friday, November 29 and Monday, December 2, the Reggae Girlz two friendlies against South Africa at the Montego Bay Sports Complex were both broadcasted live on the JFF’s YouTube channel, JFFLIVE.

The tallied views from the two games on the channel amassed to over 60,000, excluding pirated broadcasts.

Those broadcasts were a test run for something bigger in 2025.

Spearheaded by Reggae Boyz Supporters Club President Kyle Wallace and Gario Graham, founder of Kingston Made Productions, the venture will see live games of Jamaica’s various national teams being streamed on JFFLIVE.

“We’re doing it for the fans at home and in the diaspora and those friends around the world that want to see our national teams play football, from the youth to senior teams when the opportunity arises,” Wallace said at a virtual press conference earlier this week.

“In the past five weeks, Kyle and myself have been doing some extensive case studying to see what the market looks like and how football fans around the world are interacting with their favorite teams,” Graham said.

“Whether it’s YouTube or other streaming platforms, streaming will be the future and that is the key, for us to jump on that which is going to be the future and the number one revenue stream for all clubs globally,” he added.

This idea, according to Wallace, was born out of a reluctance from major broadcast entities to broadcast the Reggae Girlz games against South Africa locally or overseas for financial reasons.

“I consulted my contacts in the USA, Canada and the UK for the need and how to implement this broadcasting project. Luckily for me, Gario has a wealth of experience in television broadcasting and global marketing that met all the criteria and skillset to get this project off the ground so I jumped at the opportunity to partner with him,” he said.

These ideas were then presented to JFF President Michael Ricketts and General Secretary Dennis Chung, who were both impressed with the proposal.

“We are excited to announce this venture,” Chung said at the press conference.

“The objective that we had is really to monetize the JFF brand and the YouTube channel because we recognize the power of social media and the fact that we have to connect with our fans,” he added.

Ricketts also expressed excitement at the new initiative.

“We continue to try and explore whatever opportunities may present themselves so that we can have some sustainable income,” he said.

“If we are not in a position to fund our projects, then we are going to struggle. This is an initiative that, we are sure, will help us to develop our youth programs and help as part of our marketing tool. We are a brand and we are intent on getting things in the global space so that we can attract viewers and ensure that our diaspora would have a connection with Jamaica’s football,” he added.

Graham then went into more technical details of the initiative and what fans can look forward to.

“We went on a quest to assess what capabilities we have in our stadiums in Jamaica. Our physical assets like cameras, WIFI and all these other technical aspects. In 2025, we will have major improvements in all those areas. We have top notch cameras coming with 4k quality all across the board and we’ll have drone aspects as well,” he said.

“Based off the calendar, we are going to target the games that we are legally able to showcase. If those games are within the rights of the JFF, we will target those games from both the Reggae Boyz and Reggae Girlz as well as the Under-20s, Under-17s and Under-15s. We’re going to do full, across the board coverage of all our teams,” he added.

Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) General Secretary Dennis Chung has defended the decision to rehire Hubert Busby Jr as the senior Reggae Girlz Head coach, as he pointed out that the country’s governing football body conducted due diligence before moving forward.

Chung’s declaration is in response to an article published by British daily newspaper The Guardian, alleging that the JFF misrepresented Busby’s reinstatement, stating that he was cleared of sexual misconduct allegations by Fifa’s Ethics Committee.

He dismissed the article published on Friday and headlined “Jamaica FA falsely claims women’s team coach was cleared of alleged sexual misconduct” as a “witch hunt” and accused the outlet of distorting facts and overlooking critical details.

This, as the article cast doubt on Busby’s “clearance,” noting that Fifa’s Ethics Committee had closed the preliminary investigation due to a statute of limitations without formally exonerating him.

SportsMax.Tv obtained a copy of the correspondence from the Investigatory Chamber of Fifa's Ethics Committee stating that the investigation against Busby was closed based on information available. An email titled 'Fifa Clearance Letter' was also obtained, the content of which clarified that Busby was clear to seek employment.

Since the article surfaced, SportsMax.Tv has been reliably informed that Busby is in the process of filing a defamation lawsuit against someone in the UK. It is not clear if the individual is an employee at the British newspaper.

Busby was reappointed Reggae Girlz Head coach earlier this year, after he was initially suspended by the JFF in 2021, when the allegation of sexual misconduct was brought against him by former player Malloree Enoch.

Enoch alleged that Busby made sexual advances towards her during his time in charge at the Vancouver Whitecaps women’s outfit between 2010 and 2011. Busby denied the allegations.

“Do you think that the JFF, which is the organisation that dismissed Busby when the allegation was made, wouldn’t have done our due diligence? The technical committee received information to say that the investigation has closed and there was nothing based on the information that they had; there was nothing to support what was alleged,” Chung told SportsMax.Tv.

“The letter had stated that Fifa closed the investigation based on the information available. They never referred to any statute of limitations, as the article said. In addition to that, there was an email that Busby forwarded from Fifa stating that he could share it with us for employment purposes,” he added.

Chung clarified that contrary to the statement that he declined multiple requests for interviews and comments, he only received one call from a Guardian journalist, whom he directed to Busby or his legal representatives.

“They said that they reached out to me multiple times; that is not true. They called me once, and I told them, just like any organisation would, that Busby is a staff member and I am not at liberty to discuss his situation or give out any information on him. I told them they should call Busby, as it is he they need to get that information from,” Chung shared.

Chung also rubbished the claim in The Guardian article that several witnesses—including Enoch—were not interviewed by Fifa’s Ethics Committee.

“Does that make sense? If she is the one that made the allegations, do you think Fifa wouldn’t interview her? So what it is, it’s a witch hunt that they are on; it is almost as if they are saying he is still guilty even though the investigation is closed, and that is totally ridiculous,” Chung opined.

Finally, Chung said he is deeply disappointed by the article, which he believes unfairly targets Busby. He also expressed the view that the report adds unnecessary scrutiny to an issue that the JFF and Fifa have already addressed through established protocols.

“I don’t understand what it is about, but there is obviously something behind it. Because the letter never said the investigation was closed based on the statute of limitation, it said the investigation was closed based on the information that they had,” he noted.

“Not because an allegation is made means you’re going to hold it against a man for the rest of his life. Allegations are made against politicians all over, and they are still in positions of authority. You can’t because an allegation is made against a man; hold it against him, and there is nothing to prove that it happened,” Chung ended.

Concacaf president Victor Montagliani has praised Jamaica’s recent achievements in football, highlighting the success of both the senior men’s and women’s national teams as evidence that the island’s football is in a strong position.

Montagliani, who is currently on a visit to the island, along with Bermuda and St Lucia Football Association presidents Mark Wade and Lyndon Cooper, expressed optimism about Jamaica's football future, particularly with the announcement of much-anticipated upgrades to the National Stadium.

The Reggae Boyz are set to contest the Concacaf Nations League quarterfinals against United States in November and are pushing to secure a place at the 2026 FIFA World Cup.

Meanwhile, the Reggae Girlz made history with back-to-back appearances at the FIFA Women’s World Cup, reaching the knockout stage last year, a feat that solidified their standing as one of the top teams in the region.

These accomplishments, Montagliani believes, are key indicators of the country’s footballing growth.

“Obviously, I am very excited to be back in Jamaica; we know the success that's been happening on the field, starting with your two senior teams. Obviously, the men who've now qualified for the Nation's League quarterfinal in November and obviously your women's team that has qualified for the last two Women's World Cups is obviously favoured to qualify for the next one with arguably the best player in the world [Khadija ‘Bunny’ Shaw] playing for them,” Montagliani said during a press conference at the Jamaica Pegasus Hotel on Wednesday.

Concacaf president Victor Montagliani accepts a specially designed jersey from JFF president Michael Ricketts.

“So things are looking really good in that gold and green jersey that's being worn in our region. Even your youth teams have been very successful, U-20 and U-17, and obviously the talent has always been here since, I think the momentum of the 98 (1998 World Cup accomplishment) in terms of how things were being done. I think in the last few years, with the opportunities that the players are having through our Concacaf competitions, you're seeing things now come to fruition here in Jamaica in terms of the success both on the women's side and on the men's side,” he added.

In addition to commending the on-field success, Montagliani expressed delight at the news that Jamaica's National Stadium is set for much-needed upgrades. He hinted that the improvements could open the door for future Concacaf tournaments to be hosted on the island, a move that would further cement Jamaica’s position as a football hub in the Caribbean.

The renovation project, to be done in phases, will see the capacity of the National Stadium increase from 28,500 to 35,000. 

“It was announced publicly yesterday (Tuesday) in terms of the major renovations that are going into your National Stadium; that put a smile on my face because, as you know, we brought for the first time ever into really the Caribbean and really outside of North America; we brought a Gold Cup game here in Jamaica in 2019 with tremendous success. But the reality is now the standards of international competitions, and when I say international competitions, I don't mean just at the FIFA level. I mean even at the Concacaf level.

“The standards are getting higher and higher with respect to what is expected by audiences both at the stadium and also those watching on TV and ultimately the players that are playing in it. So now that there's major renovations to bring the National Stadium to an international level bodes well for the future of both the JFF and Jamaica itself as a country, to bring events here,” Montagliani reasoned.