The Confederation of North, Central America and Caribbean Association Football (Concacaf) has today announced the formation and membership of a Caribbean Professional League Working Group, with the support of world football’s governing body, FIFA.
The new group will be a subgroup of the Concacaf Competitions Committee and will carry out a comprehensive study of Caribbean professional club football. It will include the Chairman of the Concacaf Competitions Committee, the CFU President, experts with experience in football and other sectors from across the Caribbean and a FIFA representative.
The terms of reference for the Working Group have been approved by the Concacaf Council and its work will begin when the current public health situation allows. The membership of the group comprises:
- Concacaf Competitions Committee Chairman, Yon de Luisa (Chairman)
- Concacaf Vice-president & Caribbean Football Union President, Randolph Harris (Deputy Chairman)
- Representative of Trinidad and Tobago, Brent Sancho (Member)
- Representative of Jamaica, Christopher Samuda (Member)
- Representative of Haiti, Patrick Massenat (Member)
- Representative of the Dominican Republic, Manuel Estrella (Member)
- Representative of Curaçao, Valdemar Florentino Marcha (Member)
- FIFA representative
Administrative support for the group will be provided by the Confederation’s Competitions and Development Departments, and its Jamaica office.
"The feasibility of a Caribbean professional league has previously been explored by regional stakeholders. However, for a combination of reasons, those attempts did not get beyond the point of an early draft, with little substance and no progress made on the matter. ", said Concacaf President Victor Montagliani.
"The time is right for the Caribbean and Concacaf, with the support of FIFA, to lead the way to develop a comprehensive study which has the sole aim of the development of football in the Caribbean and the region as a whole.
"This is not about a league in isolation but also about the professionalization of football and its players, coaches and administrators in the region. This newly created group, with strong representation from the Caribbean, will take a football first approach and will be given sufficient time to consider a range of potential formats and structures.
"The insights of experts from the Concacaf Competitions Committee, the CFU, Concacaf Member Associations and local leagues and clubs will be crucial as the group diligently studies future options for Caribbean professional football.”
