Singapore U-23 side vow to go all out to prove their worth against Myanmar

Singapore U-23 side vow to go all out to prove their worth against Myanmar



The Singapore Under-23 national team are raring to prove themselves worthy of a place in the Asian Games, even if a victory over Myanmar on Wednesday (Jun 20) could eventually prove futile.

The game, which will be played at Bishan Stadium at 8pm, is the only chance for the team to impress the Singapore National Olympic Council (SNOC) and justify their inclusion in the Asian Games.

Irfan Fandi, the Singapore team's 21-year-old captain, said: "I expect everybody to play their best. There's no excuses to be off-form, because these are the players that were chosen - the best U-23 players in Singapore - so we have to give our best on Wednesday, including myself."

Zulfadhmi Suzliman acknowledged that Myanmar are tough opponents - the squad made the U-20 World Cup in 2015 - but he believes that the Singapore team have a "desire to win".

"I can see the boys are working hard, and are willing to go all out ... it's not going to be an easy game, and we will definitely need to work as a team. We really need this win," the 22-year-old forward said.

The Football Association of Singapore's (FAS) nomination for the team to compete in the Asian Games was rejected last month, as the results put forward by the FAS did not meet SNOC's criteria.

To meet the selection criteria and be included in the Singapore contingent, the team have to match the top-six result at a previous Asian Games, or beat opponents ranked at least sixth in Asia.

Prior to the announcement, the Singapore U-23's only result this year was a 3-0 friendly defeat to Indonesia in March.

The FAS subsequently told Channel NewsAsia earlier this month that they were struggling to find an opponent because of a lack of dates. The match against Myanmar was only announced last Wednesday.

While Myanmar are ranked 27th in the region, and they also did not compete in the last Asian Games in 2014, the FAS believes that the current Myanmar squad is one of the best in the region.

Apart from their World Cup qualification, they also reached the 2014 Asian Football Confederation U-19 Championship semi-finals.

TEAM HINDERED BY CONSTRAINTS

Still, the Singapore camp's preparation hasn't been the best one.

The full squad will have just one training session together on Tuesday due to their exertions in the Singapore Premier League.

Coach Fandi Ahmad admitted that it will be a "very big task" for them.

"Everybody is excited to play in an international game but the players haven't trained much together. It will be all about the desire ... We (the coaches) have to try and make them play as hard as they can, to show they are good enough to play football and good enough to represent the country," he said.

Fandi admitted that he is also wary of putting too much pressure on his young players.

"I won't tell them this is a qualifier. I will say 'do your best, this is your country, it's an honour and you have to give your best'. It's all about the mentality they display," he said.

"Playing in the Asian Games will help them to gain more experience, and it's good to gain exposure, but we can only do it with preparation."

Source: CNA/ng

Singapore slumps to lowest ever FIFA world rankings

Singapore slumps to lowest ever FIFA world rankings

The Singapore national football team has slumped to its lowest-ever position in FIFA's world rankings, according to the latest table published on Monday (Oct 16).

The Lions, on the back of October defeats to Turkmenistan in an Asian Cup qualifier tie and Qatar in an international friendly, dropped 11 notches from September's ranking of 162 to 173.

Singapore's previous lowest ranking in the 206-team table was 171, in October 2016.

V Sundramoorthy's side have yet to secure a win since beating Cambodia 1-0 in a friendly back in November 2016.

With this latest blow, the Lions are now ranked behind minnows such as Laos (162), Cambodia (170) as well as St. Vincent and the Grenadines (172). Causeway rivals Malaysia are ranked 170.

World Cup champions Germany top the standings followed by Brazil, Portugal and Argentina.

~News courtesy of Channel News Asia~

Lions' Asian Cup hopes dimmed by 1-1 draw with Turkmenistan

Lions' Asian Cup hopes dimmed by 1-1 draw with Turkmenistan



The Lions were held to a 1-1 draw by Turkmenistan at Jalan Besar Stadium on Tuesday night (Sep 5), dimming their chances of qualifying for the 2019 Asian Cup.

Singapore needed to win this fixture to lift themselves from the bottom of Group E, but were pegged by an equaliser 10 minutes from time.

The home side started promisingly, fielding three attackers up front in the form of Khairul Amri, Faris Ramli and Safuwan Baharudin in the first half, but they failed to convert their chances.

After the break, Shakir Hamzah opened the scoring for Singapore just past the hour mark. The left winger took advantage of a couple of deflections in the Turkmenistan box before smashing a half-volley into the bottom corner.

It was 1-0 to Singapore, and the Lions' first victory in 10 games seemed within reach as they controlled the tie.

But the sucker punch came just 20 minutes later, when Annadurdyev Altymyrat tapped in from five metres out, after a fine cross from the left.

Singapore's back three could only watch as the team's efforts were undone by a single lapse in concentration.

The result means the 171st-ranked hosts are rooted at the bottom of the group after three games.

The result extended Singapore’s winless run to 10 games in all competitions, having last beaten Cambodia in a friendly in November 2016.

It also prolonged Singapore football’s dismal run of results in 2017, including disappointing defeats in age-group competitions this year.

Singapore next face Turkmenistan away in October in their fourth match in Group E, before facing Bahrain in November and playing Chinese Taipei in March 2018.

The Lions could still qualify for the Asian Cup for the first time since 1984 - provided they win all their remaining group matches.

Source: Channel News Asia

Cristiano Ronaldo in Singapore

Cristiano Ronaldo in Singapore to visit Peter Lim and family



Cristiano Ronaldo at Thomson Medical Centre in Singapore on Jul 21. (Photo: Gayathiri Chandramohan)

Portuguese football star Cristiano Ronaldo arrived in Singapore on Friday (Jul 21) for a short stopover to visit Singaporean billionaire Peter Lim and his family.

The Real Madrid striker dropped by Thomson Medical Centre to visit longtime friend Lim and his daughter Kim, who gave birth to a baby boy earlier this week.

A weary-looking Ronaldo arrived in a white van at around 10am, jostling his way past fans and bodyguards before making a beeline for the lift heading up to the wards.

Many autograph hunters were left empty-handed, including Jonathan Cheong, 16, who turned up at the hospital decked out in a white Real Madrid T-shirt. The Secondary 4 student was also holding a black marker and two Ronaldo trading cards.

Fifteen minutes after his arrival, security staff crowded the same lift lobby and raised hopes for the dozens of fans there that Ronaldo would make a second appearance. The Portuguese never showed up, instead leaving through a back exit.

Ronaldo's swift exit left many of the waiting fans disappointed.

"Of course, I'm naturally disappointed," said tertiary student Kelvin A. The 17-year-old waited for nearly two hours to see his idol. He added: "But I would definitely do it again."

Lim's Mint Media owns and administers all of Ronaldo's image rights, except for those related to his football club Real Madrid. Lim also owns Spanish La Liga side Valencia.

Ronaldo will sign a major endorsement deal and dine with Lim in Singapore before leaving for China on Friday night.

~News courtesy of Channel News Asia~

Lionel Messi arrives in Singapore with Argentina squad, won't feature in friendly

Lionel Messi arrives in Singapore with Argentina squad, won't feature in friendly



Football star Lionel Messi arriving at Singapore Changi Airport on Saturday (Jun 10). (Photo: Football Association of Singapore)

Fresh from their 1-0 victory against Brazil in the Melbourne Superclasico in Australia, Argentina's football team landed at Singapore's Changi Airport on Saturday evening (Jun 10) - with Lionel Messi in tow.

However, the Barcelona superstar and five-time Ballon d'Or winner will not feature in Tuesday's friendly against Singapore at the National Stadium "due to personal reasons", international match promoter UNICESS later confirmed in a media statement.

It added that Gonzalo Higuain and Nicolas Otamendi will not be taking to the pitch as well.

There had been speculation over Messi's attendance, after it was reported earlier this week that he and Otamendi could miss the friendly, as they wanted to prepare for their respective weddings.

Channel NewsAsia understands that Messi travelled back to the airport a few hours after arriving in Singapore and joining the team at The Fullerton Hotel.


(Photo: @Argentina/Twitter)

About 10 fans waited outside the private terminal at Changi Airport on Saturday - some of them had camped out for seven hours - hoping to catch a glimpse of their favourite players as they zipped out of the airport grounds in a bus.

Fans waiting outside Changi Airport's CIP Terminal hoping to catch a glimpse of the football stars. (Photo: Noor Farhan) "I just followed a few stars on their Instagram and Twitter accounts. And then I just calculated the time difference from Australia. We just we went to Terminal 3, Terminal 2, and then we ran here to see if we could find them for five seconds,” said 19-year-old Eshaan Bhosle.

Jasper Chai, 16, had also been hoping to get up close with the football stars: "It's a little bit disappointing, the fact that I couldn't get close to them. But it's just really a great experience to even see them, most of them just smiling and knowing that there are fans around that support them."

"From this trip (to the airport), I managed to make so many friends here. It's just amazing. Football is an international language,” he added.

Coach Jorge Sampaoli's 23-man squad is a star-studded one, with Manchester United's Sergio Romero, Paris Saint Germain's Angel Di Maria and Juventus striker Paulo Dybala all set to start against Singapore.

The friendly was organised to mark the Football Association of Singapore's 125th anniversary.

~News courtesy of Channel News Asia~

Alleged misuse of Tiong Bahru Football Club’s funds

SportSG files police report for alleged misuse of Tiong Bahru Football Club’s funds

Sport Singapore (SportSG) has filed a police report after it received a letter alleging that a senior officer of Tiong Bahru Football Club (TBFC) had instigated another club to "delay and/or obstruct" the completion of audits until after the Football Association of Singapore (FAS) Elections, it said on Thursday (Apr 20).

The governing body of local sports said in a press release that it decided to file a police report on Apr 19 at about 7.50pm over the suspected misuse of TBFC’s funds and a purported attempt by a senior officer of the club to delay and/or obstruct the completion of audits into the S.League sit-out clubs.

SportSG said on Apr 16 that it had asked FAS in July 2016 to look into the proposed merger of Woodlands Wellington FC (WWFC) with Hougang following the end of the 2014 S.League season, which ultimately fell through.

SportSG said it had received complaints from the public about the proposed merger between Hougang and WWFC, and how WWFC's assets such as jackpot machines were being apportioned.

WWFC fans, who lodged the complaints, also questioned the legality of the merger.

The merger was eventually called off in 2016 after FAS said that it was "not feasible for implementation".

In the same statement, SportSG also expressed concerns over TBFC chairman Bill Ng's S$500,000 donation to the FAS in 2014.

"Following the media reports that Tiong Bahru Football Club had donated S$500,000 to the ASEAN Football Federation (AFF) through the FAS, SportSG looked into the matter, and received further information on Apr 18," SportSG said.

In response, a spokesman for Mr Ng released a statement to say that he will be fully cooperating with local authorities over the matter.

Mr Ng, who is vying for the FAS presidency and leads the Team Game Changers slate in the leadership election on Apr 29, told reporters that the national footballing body had asked him for a donation rather than a sponsorship for the now-defunct football club LionsXII.

The general secretary of FAS Winston Lee produced evidence to rebut Mr Ng's claims and prove that Mr Ng was fully aware that his S$500,000 donation was meant for AFF.

SportSG added that it will also request to meet the FAS’ Ad-hoc Electoral Committee to clarify the way ahead for the upcoming elections.

In a statement on Thursday, the police confirmed that a report has been lodged by SportSG in relation to a football club.

"The police will conduct a thorough investigation and will take appropriate action against any persons who have committed offences in Singapore. As investigations are ongoing, it is inappropriate to comment further at this point,” police said.

~News courtesy of Channel News Asia~

La Liga launches regional office in Singapore

La Liga launches regional office in Singapore, to bring more teams over

Spain's football league La Liga launched a regional hub office in Singapore on Thursday (Mar 23), as part of its international expansion strategy to popularise the league in Southeast Asia.

Speaking at the press conference during the launch, La Liga's president Javier Tebas said the league wants to tap on the growing presence and popularity of La Liga in this region.

He said: "We are delighted to extend our presence in Asia, and this is the next step in our efforts to grow the sport and La Liga's popularity globally.

"Asia has always been a very important market for us, and we feel that the time is right to grow out presence in the region even further, where we have a huge fan base. I am eagerly looking forward to our visit to Singapore for this historical project."

La Liga said it will focus on investing time and resources through exhibition matches, player visits and grassroots development programmes.

MORE TEAMS TO VISIT SINGAPORE

Among their plans is to bring in more La Liga teams to Singapore. "We’ll definitely be looking into bringing in some of the clubs here for exhibition matches next summer in 2018, as it part of our strategy for growth here,” said Mr Tebas.

Acknowledging that the La Liga would have to compete against the popularity of the English Premier League in Asia, Mr Tebas said there is enough of the viewership pie for everyone. “There is space for everybody, there is a lot of room to grow and there is something for everybody especially in the digital space. This is proven by the fact that last year our viewership audience grew by 40 per cent.”

“In this part of the world, more that 55 per cent of the world’s population lives here. It would be a mistake in our strategy if we don’t reach out to the people in Asia.”

The league's ambassador, former Real Madrid and Liverpool striker Fernando Morientes, said: "I am very excited to be visiting Singapore for the launch of the special project.

"As La Liga ambassadors, our biggest responsibility is to represent the best league in the world and keep our fans engaged with the sport. It's always our endeavour to reach out to supporters, not only in Spain, but also across the world," added the former forward.

This is the league's fourth office in Asia after China, India and Dubai. La Liga said its Singapore office will house a dedicated set of resources to execute its proposed projects in the region.

As soon as La Liga Singapore's office at Great World City's East Tower officially starts work next month, the Football Association of Singapore (FAS) is planning to propose sending a group local youth players for training stints in Spain through the newfound partnership.

According to FAS interim president Lim Kia Tong: "From our initial internal discussions, we’re looking at possibility of getting four of our youth players for a stint there. That’s where I believe we, too, can benefit from this new relationship."

~News courtesy of Channel News Asia~

Eleven Sports Network secures Euro 2016 broadcast rights

Eleven Sports Network secures Euro 2016 broadcast rights in Singapore

Eleven Sports Network has secured exclusive rights to broadcast the UEFA Euro 2016 tournament in Singapore, the global sports etwork announced on Friday (Mar 8).

The network is available online and on Singtel TV.

Eleven Sports said that the package includes qualifiers and tournament rights. Viewers will get to watch up to four live matches per day during the group stage, it added.

"UEFA Euro 2016 is one of the most popular and important football competitions in the world and is exactly the type of major event we want to bring to the fans,” said Mr Danny Menken, Group Managing Director, Eleven Sports Netowrk. “These rights mean supporters in Singapore can still get their football-fix outside of the domestic league season.”

This year's tournament will see 24 teams contest for the trophy for the first time in the tournament's history. The group stage will run from Jun 10 to 22, and the knockout stages from Jun 25 to Jul 7.

The final will be held on Jul 10.

~News courtesy of Channel News Asia~

LionsXII out of Malaysia Super League

LionsXII out of Malaysia Super League

In a post on its website, the FAM said it is not renewing the MOU signed with the Football Association of Singapore in 2011, and so the LionsXII will no longer play in the MSL beginning in 2016.

The LionsXII will not be playing in the Malaysia Super League (MSL) in 2016, announced the Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) at a press conference late Tuesday evening (Nov 24) in Kuala Lumpur, following a meeting among FAM's executive committee.

In a post on its website, the FAM said it is not renewing the MOU signed with the Football Association of Singapore in 2011, and so the LionsXII will no longer play in the MSL beginning in 2016.

The side is currently involved in the Malaysia Cup quarter-finals, where they lost 4-1 to Pahang in the first leg on Tuesday night.

The LionsXII have been playing in the MSL since 2012. The vacancy left by the Singapore-based team will be filled by another team with a playoff.

~News courtesy of Channel News Asia~

Singtel bags EPL rights for next 3 seasons

Singtel bags broadcast rights for next 3 EPL seasons

Singtel announced yesterday that it has won the Singapore broadcast rights to all English Premier League (EPL) matches for the next three seasons starting from August next year.

This comes a week after the telco's Australian subsidiary, Optus, said it won the Australian rights to broadcast the popular British football league, also known as the Barclays Premier League, because it is sponsored by Barclays Bank.

Yuen Kuan Moon, chief executive of Singtel's Singapore consumer business, said in a statement yesterday that Singtel TV fans "can be assured that their football experience stays uninterrupted at rates that remain affordable".

Mr Yuen added: "Since the beginning, our aim (has been) to bring the Premier League and other football properties to as many Singaporeans as possible. Football is for everyone and we intend to work with all relevant parties to make sure fans get access to the best League experience."

Singtel has held the rights to broadcast the EPL here since 2009, when it wrested the 2010-13 season rights from incumbent StarHub, which had been showing the games since 1997. Singtel reportedly spent hundreds of millions of dollars to secure the rights. Singtel secured the rights to the 2013-16 season again in 2012.

The EPL rights boosted Singtel's pay TV subscriber base significantly from 78,000 as of March 31, 2009, to 423,000 as of March 31 this year.

~News courtesy of My Paper~

Ikhsan Fandi looking to make his mark in Lion City Cup

Ikhsan Fandi looking to make his mark in Lion City Cup

The Lion City Cup is a competition that has unearthed local football stars like Fandi Ahmad, V Sundramoorthy and Shahril Ishak.

Now, Ikhsan Fandi, the son of Fandi Ahmad, will be looking to etch his name in Singapore football history when the tournament kicks off on Friday (Aug 14), 6pm at Jalan Besar Stadium.

Ikhsan is part of the national under-16 team. Comparisons are likely to be made between him and his father, but the 16-year-old is eager to prove he is his own man.

"Hopefully, we win this thing, but for me I just want to score,” said Ikhsan. “I'll just turn it into something positive, make myself work harder, and prove them if they think that it's just because of my father and brother that I'm in the team, I'll show them on the field."

The Singapore under-16s will be up against the Liverpool under-16s in the first game and the team is ready to go.

Said Ikhsan: "It's a good platform for us, for our team to see where we are right now and just to show Singapore what we have. The team is really excited and they want to do well. So they're really fighting for their spot in the first 11."

Meanwhile, the Singapore under-15 team will also be in action against the Tottenham under-16s. Head coach V Selvaraj said the competition comes at the right time, ahead of the AFC Under-16 Championship qualifiers, which begin in September.

Coach Selvaraj said: "These two games definitely will be a good gauge for us, to see where we stand. We will have another two weeks after that to prepare and work on our weaknesses and build on our strengths to prepare for the AFC tournament."

The first match of the Lion City Cup is between the Singapore under-15s and Tottenham under-16s.

The youth tournament is making a return to the local football calendar after a year's absence. Fandi Ahmad had helped Singapore win two Lion City Cup titles.

~News courtesy of Channel News Asia~

FAS reviews Singapore's showing in SEA Games football

FAS reviews Singapore's showing in SEA Games football

The Football Association of Singapore (FAS) said on Wednesday (Jul 29) that it “acknowledges that the Singapore public, as it should, expected more from its (National Under-23) team during the SEA Games”, following a review of their performance.

In a statement, FAS also said it was “hugely disappointed that key staff have taken to the press to engage in a public spat”.

National head coach Bernd Stange and former national under-23 coach Aide Iskandar were hauled up by FAS for trading accusations publicly in the aftermath of the Young Lions' poor showing at the Games. Singapore crashed out of the Games after losing to Indonesia in the Group A match.

Stange and Aide’s behaviour not only “violates the teamwork and respect” FAS seeks to promote within the organisation, it also “explicitly violates the FAS Code of Conduct and Terms of Employment Contract”, said the association.

FAS added that efforts will be made to review the team management decisions before and during the tournament, and tactical decisions taken by coaching staff. It will also review the preparation of the team and players for the tournament, including a relook at the rest and training schedules.

Additionally, FAS said it would make the effort to review the involvement of parties and communication between management, technical and support staff so that issues will be managed upfront.

~News courtesy of Channel News Asia~

Everton land in Singapore for Barclays Asia Trophy

Everton land in Singapore for Barclays Asia Trophy

English football side Everton FC touched down in Singapore on Monday (Jul 13), hoping to start its pre-season tour in a positive fashion in the upcoming Barclays Asia Trophy.

The Toffees have brought a 24-man strong squad for their two National Stadium matches, against Stoke City on Wednesday and another with either Arsenal or the Singapore Select XI team on Saturday.



All smiles upon arrival into Singapore for the Barclays Asia Trophy (Photo: Jack Board)

Among the squad are new Everton recruits Tom Cleverley, who has reunited with manager Roberto Martinez from their days at Wigan, and Spanish winger Gerard Deulofeu, who joined the club on a permanent basis in the summer for a reported £4.2 million (S$8.85 million) after a loan stint from Barcelona FC.

Romelu Lukaku, Seamus Coleman and Ross Barkley are all expected to take their place in the side, as Everton build towards the upcoming English season, hoping to go better than their 11th place finish in 2014/15.

Missing from the travelling squad are England left-back Leighton Baines, who is out with an ankle injury, Darron Gibson, who is nursing a wounded foot, and the injury-cursed Bryan Oviedo, still recovering from a toe injury sustained in April.

Kevin Mirallas and James McCarthy feature in the squad, despite rumours the pair are being targeted by Tottenham in the summer transfer window.

Several young players including promising striker Conor McAleny and Luke Garbutt will be looking to build on their fledgling Everton careers.

Members of the public can watch Everton, Arsenal and Stoke City, train at the National Stadium on Tuesday evening.

~News courtesy of Channel News Asia~

Arsenal in Singapore for Barclays Asia Trophy

Arsenal in Singapore for Barclays Asia Trophy

The 27-man squad of English football giant Arsenal FC, including new recruit Petr Cech, arrived in Singapore Monday (Jul 13) ahead of showcase matches this week in the Barclays Asia Trophy friendlies.

Arsenal will take on a Singapore Select XI on Wednesday before an all-Premier League clash against either Everton or Stoke City on Saturday, in a showcase tournament for the clubs’ Southeast Asian fan base.

It is the first time the Gunners have participated in the Asia Trophy and their first visit to Singapore shores since 1991.

"I don't think it's bad - about the heat here - because we want to sweat a little bit," manager Arsene Wenger said. "We want to put the effort in, everyone's fighting for places now so it's an important game already for us.

"You want to win every game and you know a few years ago no-one was interested in preparation but now there's so much," he said. "The pressure is on us to do better."



Arsenal have brought a near-full squad on tour as they kick-start preparations for the upcoming English season, but will be missing the attacking trio of Chilean superstar Alexis Sanchez, last-season recruit Danny Welbeck and Tomas Rosicky.

Sanchez will rest after winning the Copa America on home soil last month, while Welbeck is continuing his recovery from a knee injury.

Olivier Giroud, Mesut Ozil and Jack Wilshere are prime candidates to lead the Arsenal line-up; the latter looking to break back into the starting side after an injury-interrupted 2014-15.



Mikel Arteta also experienced an inconsistent season and said he was hoping to build some good preparation for the year ahead as well as impress the large contingent of Gunners fans in Singapore.

"We've heard it's going to be quite crazy here so we're hoping to have a good experience. We've been in Asia before so we know what it's like," Arteta said.



Fans may get their first glimpse at Cech in a Gunners strip after the Czech goalkeeper completed a 10 million pound (US$15.5 million) transfer from champions Chelsea in the off-season.

He will compete with established number one Wojciech Szczesny for time in goal.

Wenger said he could make a difference to Arsenal's title ambitions when asked why he had signed the veteran stopper. "First of all his talent, his experience and the fact he has won before, that can strengthen the team's belief," he said.

Wenger confirmed he was confident of keeping his three top keepers at the club, despite the increased competition with Cech's arrival.



Wenger is rumoured to be looking to bolster the squad’s defensive assets, with Roma’s Kostas Manolas and Manchester United’s Johnny Evans reported to be transfer targets. "It doesn't depend on my wish, if we can find still one or two players we'll do it," Wenger said.

Established defenders Hector Bellerin, Per Mertesacker, Nacho Monreal, Kieran Gibbs and Mathieu Debuichy are likely to get time on the pitch during Arsenal’s two matches in Singapore.

Wenger said he was not surprised by the £49 million transfer of Raheem Sterling to Manchester City, nor the big money deals secured by Manchester United for Bastian Schweinsteiger and Morgan Schneiderlin.

The general public can watch Arsenal, as well as Everton and Stoke, train at the National Stadium on Tuesday evening.

~News courtesy of Channel News Asia~

S'pore Pools eyes online bets for Euro 2016

S'pore Pools eyes online bets for Euro 2016



PLAYING SAFE: Any operator looking to get into online betting must be not-for-profit and has to include "robust social safeguards" in the websites to help gamblers control their activity. 

Legal online betting in Singapore could kick off as early as next June, in time for the Euro 2016 football championships.

Betting operators Singapore Pools and the Singapore Turf Club (STC) have applied to be exempted from laws that curb online betting, The Straits Times has learnt.

Singapore Pools has also confirmed that it has hired British giant OpenBet, which already provides online gambling software for major bookmakers such as William Hill, Paddy Power and Betfair, to help replace its current website with one which can offer sports betting.

This comes ahead of an Aug 1 deadline for lottery operators to apply to the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) to be exempted under the Remote Gambling Act, which came into force on Feb 2.

MHA confirmed with The Straits Times that both Singapore Pools and STC have applied for certificates of exemption to "offer remote gambling services for their existing products".

Singapore Pools currently offers football and motor-racing betting, as well as lottery games like 4D and Toto, while STC takes bets for horse races.

MHA said that the applications will take nine to 12 months to evaluate, based on "strict" criteria.

Any operator looking to get into online betting must be not for profit and must include "robust social safeguards" in the websites to help gamblers control their activity.

Singapore Pools plans to display the time spent on the gambling website and even allow people to apply for self-exclusion orders.

It also told The Straits Times that it is likely to separate its betting website from its corporate site to ensure that it will pass compliance checks by the MHA's Gambling Regulatory Unit. According to the documents obtained by The Straits Times, the look and feel of both sites should be coordinated to "reduce customer confusion".

It is understood that it will cost about $10 million for OpenBet to build a new site.

A steering committee, led by Singapore Pools chief executive Seah Chin Siong, has been set up to oversee the operator's sports business and IT teams, which are working to get the site up and running in time for Euro 2016. The teams are said to be working with banks on how to link customer bank accounts to the betting system.

The Straits Times understands that the OpenBet team will be in Singapore next week to conduct workshops on how to run online betting operations.

The Remote Gambling Act criminalises a host of remote gambling activities, including phone betting, unless exemption is specifically obtained.

So far, 11 people - who allegedly collected bets amounting to about $3 million - have been nabbed for flouting the remote gambling laws.

The online gambling industry here is estimated to have raked in some $500 million last year from foreign- and locally based gambling portals before they were shut down.

~News courtesy of My Paper~

Spools Closed on Sunday

Tanjong Pagar United to sit out 2015 S.League season

Tanjong Pagar United to sit out 2015 S.League season

Local football club Tanjong Pagar United has confirmed it is sitting out of the next S.League season. It finished 9th in the recently concluded season, in which Warriors FC were crowned champions.

In a Facebook post on Monday (Nov 3), the Jaguars said: "It is confirmed that TPUFC will be sitting out of the 2015 S.League season. We thank all our supporters for your support from 2011 to 2014. Hope to see you again."

No reason was given. Previously, a lack of finances forced Tanjong Pagar United to exit after the 2004 S.League season for six years.

The football club goes back four decades. It was known as Tiong Bahru United Football Club in 1996, before changing to its current name in 1998. It won the S.League Best Fan Club Award from 1997 to 1999.

~News courtesy of Channel Newsasia~

Warriors FC win S.League title

Warriors FC win S.League title in nail-biting finish

Warriors FC have won the S.League title on the final day of the season in a nail-biting finish.

Both teams went into their final game on Friday (Oct 31) level on points, but Brunei DPMM had a vastly superior goal difference. The Warriors thus needed to better DPMM's result or the Bruneian team would win the title.

It was a cagey first half for both DPMM and the Warriors at their respective matches, but the title race sparked to life in the second half.

At the Choa Chu Kang Stadium, Hafiz Rahim scored what turned out to be the title-winning goal for the Warriors in the 47th minute against Albirex Niigata, as the match ended 1-0 to the Warriors.

DPMM - who were without midfielder Azwan Ali and 15-goal striker Roy O'Donovan - took on Tampines Rovers at the Jalan Besar Stadium. It was Tampines who drew first blood in the 64th minute through Jozef Kaplan, before Miljan Mrdakovic made it 2-0 in the 72nd minute.

Rodrigo Tosi clawed one back for DPMM in the 81st minute, but it was too little too late for the Bruneians as the Warriors clinched the S.League title.

This was also Aleksandar Duric's last match before retiring from professional football, as he ended his 16-year professional career in Singapore with a win. At the end of the match, he was presented with jerseys from Tampines Rovers Chairman Teo Hock Seng and Football Association of Singapore President Zainudin Nordin.



~News courtesy of Channel Newsasia~

ASEAN Super League in the works, says FAS

ASEAN Super League in the works, says FAS

An all new ASEAN Super League is set to kick off in 2016, pending approval by world governing body FIFA. The league will span nine months, with each of the 10 ASEAN nations guaranteed a place.

This was revealed by Football Association of Singapore president Zainudin Nordin at the association's Annual General Meeting on Friday (Sep 12) evening.

"We have also presented our project to FIFA. And they are looking at it in detail, and we'll be having a sales discussion with them soon. Subsequently, after we have got the clearance, we are confident we are able to move this project forward, to ensure that we are able to come up with a very good quality professional league for the good of ASEAN," Mr Zainudin said.

Separately, he announced that the association is looking for a new Technical Director, following the resignation of Slobodan Pavkovic. The Serb had joined FAS in 2008 and had been working to enhance its youth development programmes, through the National Football Academy (NFA) and Junior Centres of Excellence.

He is leaving to pursue other opportunities, the association said. The 58-year-old said his time with FAS has been a "rewarding journey", but that it is time for him to explore possibilities with other clubs in Singapore or in the region.

"“Personally, I am deeply heartened by the development of our players who have progressed through our youth development system," he said, taking stock of his tenure. He noted that the likes of Adam Swandi and Irfan Fandi Ahmad have been singled out for praise by foreign football coaches and officials at international competitions such as the Lion City Cup.

Others who have progressed from the National Football Academy age-groups and caught the attention of foreign coaches and scouts, include Harriss Harun, Safuwan Baharudin and Iqbal Hussain, he said.

"We have a good pool of talented and intelligent players and I firmly believe that more will be presented with the opportunity to play overseas if we receive more support and resources to send our players to play more top-level international matches and also to train at quality facilities and pitches."

~News courtesy of Channel Newsasia~

Singapore Pools cheating

~Courtesy of The New Paper~