Boynes: $78M given to football.
By: Sean Douglas (Express).[/size]
Minister of Sport and Youth Affairs Roger Boynes said yesterday Government has provided $78 million to promote local football including the Soca Warriors at the recent World Cup Finals in Germany.
He made the assertion in a written reply to a question by Chaguanas Member of Parliament Manohar Ramsaran yesterday in the House of Representatives.
The $78 million was broken down with $14 million for general football initiatives, including $10 million to the TT Football Federation (TTFF) to initially prepare for the FIFA World Cup. The rest was for community and pro-league football. About $31 million was given to the TTFF upon the national team’s qualification for the World Cup Finals (including $20 million from the ministry to pay salaries, stipends and bonuses for players and technical staff). Another $10 million went to Government agencies like TSTT, NLCB, Petrotrin and NGC for unspecified purposes.
Boynes said some $32 million was given out in rewards to players and technical staff after the team’s outstanding performance against Sweden, England and Paraguay in Germany. The Government also gave $1 million to the TTFF to host the Caribbean Football Union Youth Cup in Trinidad and Tobago last month.
