Ikey's Ideas

On the Dream Cup

On the scoreboard, the end result may look lopsided—even embarrassing—but for the exhibition that Philippine football fans (or just David Beckham fans) were treated to tonight, the ‘Dream Cup’ was a success.

For starters, there’s no denying that Becks, despite the fact that he is in the twilight of his career, is far and away the greatest football star to set foot in the Philippines in past 30+ years, perhaps ever. I resisted the urge to fan-boy like so many others who put down big money just to catch a glimpse of the poster boy rather than the midfield maestro, but after getting to watch the man for a solid 75 minutes where men, women and children were screaming every time he so much as breathed in their general direction, I have to admit that he’s got a footballing aura about him that’s palpable even from across a football pitch. Even if you were totally blind, you’d be able to follow Beckham around Rizal Memorial by just listening for where the loudest cheers were, because you knew those were for him. The more impressive part though, is that despite his huge star power his footballing power is still unparalleled. He sees all the passes and makes all the passes. Short or long, high or low, deft or heavy, his magic on the ball is inspiring. His opening goal, a classy one-touch, right-footed curler was almost enough to justify the ticket prices.

Our Azkals may have only had 1 goal to show for their efforts, but what a goal it was! Personally, I’ve been a little skeptical of the Younghusband brothers ever since the Azkals broke on to the scene. I always felt that their fame rested more on their Fil-foreign looks rather than their skill on the field, but I don’t have any criticisms of Phil Younghusband’s after his world class goal tonight. Taking a long ball in stride, cutting back onto his left foot with a quick heel chop, and cooly bending a shot past the keep with the defender falling all over himself to catch up was just as impressive—if not more so—than Beckham’s. Bravo.

Despite the concerns that high ticket prices were going to kill the crowd, I’d say that Rizal Memorial was 80-90% full by the time the second half started. I’m not really sure if there were more football fans or Beckham fan-boys/girls in attendance, but in the name of boosting the popularity of football in our country, I’d say that any publicity is good publicity. It was heartening to see that there were plenty of Azkal fans in the stands, people who know their favorite players and what positions they played, not just what their faces looked like. Judging by the strong cheers for Calindong, Del Rosario, Araneta and others, I’m happy to hear the Azkal fan base support their very own home grown talent. Perhaps one day, we won’t have to invite the future David Beckham to pack a football stadium. Instead, we’ll have our own international football superstars carrying the banner of Philippine football to other countries.

All in all, win or lose, a great night for the sport and an even greater night for the fans.