The Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) held a press conference on Tuesday to officially unveil the new kits to be worn by the respective national teams.
The kits are the first of a ground-breaking partnership between the Federation and apparel giants, Adidas, and were officially unveiled in the boardroom at the JFF headquarters.
“This is a very significant day for football in the history of this country,” said JFF President Michael Ricketts.
“The JFF started the process of negotiating with Adidas, arguably one of the most decorated sport apparel manufacturers in the world. These negotiations were intense and there were times when I felt helpless or that it would not work but, thereafter, came some light and the rest is history,” Ricketts added.
The agreement with Adidas is in place for the next four years.
“It is significant for the JFF to be working with Adidas. The expectation around this transaction, globally, is huge,” said JFF General Secretary Dennis Chung.
“I think that, based on feedback, the expectation and the excitement of people internationally could even be more than here. This transaction with Jamaica is more than just football and sports. It is a culture,” he added.
The Under-17 Reggae Boyz and senior Reggae Girlz are the first two national teams to sport the new kits.
The Under-17s recently competed in the CONCACAF U-17 Championship where they lost to Guatemala in the Round of 16 and the Reggae Girlz are currently in Australia taking part in the Cup of Nations, a build-up to the FIFA Women’s World Cup from July 20- August 20 later this year.
The Reggae Boyz first time in the new kit will be in two friendly internationals against Trinidad & Tobago on March 4 and March 11.
Jamaica’s Under-17 football team was scheduled to depart the island for Guatemala on Thursday to begin their quest to qualify for the FIFA Under-17 World Cup.
Unfortunately, this was not the case as, according to General Secretary of the Jamaica Football Federation Dennis Chung, 14 members of the squad were unable to get on the flight to Guatemala.
The reasoning given by Chung is because of a delay in receiving travel exemption letters for the players.
“An unfortunate incident happened today. The Under-17 boys who are on their way to Guatemala for the World Cup qualifiers. 14 of them did not make the flight today because, although they had received the exemption to travel, the exemption letter came in late so they did not get to make it on the flight,” Chung said.
The Concacaf Under-17 Championship gets underway on Saturday while Jamaica’s first match will be against Cuba on Sunday.
Jamaica is in Group G alongside Cuba, Costa Rica and Guadeloupe.
Chung noted that work is being done to ensure that the remaining players are on a plane to Guatemala on Friday.
“We are working assiduously along with our travel consultant and the airline to ensure that this is resolved. We are expecting most, if not all the players, on a flight tomorrow to get to Guatemala now that we have the exemption letters in hand so that we can begin our quest to qualify for the Under-17 world cup,” Chung said.
The young Reggae Boyz are aiming to qualify for the Under-17 World Cup for the first time since 2011. The World Cup will be held in Peru from November 10 – December 2.
Jamaica Premier League outfit Chapelton Maorons have been punished for failing to turn up for their fixture with Mount Pleasant Academy at the Effortville Community Centre on Sunday.
The Maroons, who fired experienced head coach Lenworth Hyde last week, were unable to field an 11 due to many players being unavailable.
Notably, the Maroons squad is made up mostly of schoolboys and the JPL has a rule that does not allow a team to field more than five amateurs to a team per match.
Before his dismissal, Hyde noted that this rule will put the team in a tough situation, especially since if the players sign professional contracts, they will be ineligible for overseas scholarship opportunities.
Match Commissioner Anthony Gibbs said he had not gotten any correspondence from Chapelton nor the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) for the absence of the Clarendon-based team.
The JFF announced the sanctions in a release on Monday:
“The Competitions Committee of the JFF has handed down sanctions to Chapelton Maroons who failed to turn up for their JPL fixture versus Mount Pleasant FC at the Effortville Community Center on Sunday, January 22.
The Maroons are currently twelfth in the 14-team JPL table with eight points from 10 games.
The Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) has announced new policy guidelines surrounding sexual harassment, whistle blowers and safeguarding children and young people.
The new policies emerged from a meeting of the JFF board on Saturday January 21st.
The policies, the JFF said, complement the Procurement Policy already approved in December 2022 and submitted to FIFA.
According to the JFF the Sexual Harassment policy aims to safeguard employees of both genders from unwanted sexual advances and provide them with guidelines to report incidents.
The new policy explains how they handle complaints and take action against offenders.
“The JFF aims to provide a safe working environment and prohibits any form of sexual harassment,” the football governing body said it a statement on Monday.
“Hence, any act of sexual harassment or related retaliation against an employee is unacceptable. This policy, therefore, intends to prohibit such occurrences and details the procedures to follow when an employee believes that a violation of the Policy has occurred. Making a false complaint of sexual harassment or providing false information regarding a complaint will also be treated as a violation of the policy,” the JFF said.
With regards to its Whistle Blower policy, the JFF said it will provide a mechanism for all directors, officers, employees and contractors of JFF to report and disclose, in good faith, all improper or illegal conduct which adversely affects this entity or is contrary to the public interest, without fear of punishment or reprisal.
This policy, it said, is also aimed at facilitating prompt and full investigations into reports which are made in good faith and stipulates the procedure which must be complied with when addressing any complaints which alleged acts or attempted acts of interference, intimidation or reprisal against directors, officers, employees and contractors who report, disclose or investigate such acts.
“Therefore, all directors, officers, employees and contractors of JFF are encouraged to adhere to the procedures and guidelines specified in this Policy for reporting all allegations of suspected improper or illegal acts,” the JFF said.
The policy governing the Safeguarding of Children and Young People aims to ensure compliance with the Children (Child care and Protection Act) (2004) that all children participating in activities and programmes organized by the JFF do so in as safe a manner as possible.
In addition to the policies approved, the JFF has also taken steps to ensure that it conforms with internationally accepted standards, by commissioning background checks on all coaching and technical staff, and will further expand this as they seek to bring full transparency and comfort around the persons involved with the operations of the JFF.
“This is especially as we recognize that we are the guardians of children directly, through our national teams and camps, and also have to interact with children nationally,” the JFF said.
In addition, the board also deliberated on the coaching qualifications in Jamaica, as it recognizes how critical coaching development is for a sustainable and improved football product.
Against that background, the board approved the following:
A subsidy of $150,000 for the next batch of 24 coaches that will be doing the CONCACAF B License, which will be selected as at least one from each parish and the national coaches.
For 2023, there will be two B License sessions of 24 each, and in order to encourage participation we will subsidize the first batch. The full cost is $300,000, which means that participants will only have to pay $150,000 and there are currently 27 B License coaches already.
A subsidy of $40,000 for the next batch of 24 coaches that will be doing the CONCACAF C License, which will be selected as at least one from each parish and the national coaches.
For 2023, there will be four B License sessions of 24 each, and in order to encourage participation we will subsidize the first batch. The full cost is $80,000, which means that participants will only have to pay $40,000 and there are currently 57 C License coaches already
The JFF, through the Technical Committee, will do an assessment as to whether a subsidy is needed for JFF D License certification. There are currently 300 D License coaches already.
“The JFF encourages coaches to take advantage of the available certifications, especially that as of next season the minimum coaching requirements will be as follows:
Premier League Men’s – every coach must either have a CONCACAF B License or is actively registered
Tier 2 Men’s and Premier League Women’s – every coach must have a CONCACAF C License or is actively registered
Major League – every coach must have a JFF D License or JFF Advanced Level 2 certification or is actively registered
Every person involved with the youth must do a safeguarding course, and is familiar with the Safeguarding Children and Young People policy.
At the highest level of CONCACAF A License, the JFF currently has 10 coaches completing the course, with seven of the 10 almost certified.
“The JFF is committed to improve the governance and transparency around our operations, to ensure that our stakeholders are fully aware of decisions taken that will affect the JFF and football in general,” said JFF President Michael Ricketts.
“I have therefore asked that these decisions be communicated to the public to show the steps being taken to continue the development of football in Jamaica and chart an even more successful path for Jamaica’s international performance. The JFF recognizes that we are seen as one of the leaders in CONCACAF and will ensure that we do not disappoint.”
Kingston College standout Dujuan ‘Whisper’ Richards is among 32 players invited to training sessions with Reggae Boyz Head Coach Heimir Hallgrinsson at the Jamaica Football Federation headquarters at the University of the West Indies on January 17 and 18.
The 17-year-old Richards recorded 29 goals and 19 assists in the Manning Cup and led Kingston College to the semi-finals.
The full list of players is as follows:
Kemar Foster (Waterhouse FC), Ramone Howell (Waterhouse FC), Ricardo Thomas (Dunbeholden FC), Peter McGregor (Dunbeholden FC), Trivante Stewart (Mount Pleasant FC), Ky-Mani Campbell (Mount Pleasant FC), Demario Phillips (Mount Pleasant FC), Devonte Campbell (Mount Pleasant FC), Jamoi Topey (Mount Pleasant FC), Tafari Chambers (Mount Pleasant FC), Sue-Lae McCalla (Mount Pleasant FC), Alwayne Henry (Mount Pleasant FC), Odane Murray (Mount Pleasant FC), Eric Edwards (Arnett Gardens), Kimani Arbouine (Arnett Gardens), Earl Simpson (Arnett Gardens), Ajuma Johnson (Arnett Gardens), Richard King (Cavaluer SC), Dwayne Atkinson (cavalier SC), Collin Anderson (Cavalier SC), Kyle Ming (Cavalier SC), Jeadine White (Cavalier SC), Gawaine Austin (Portmore United), Oshane Staple (Harbour View FC), Colorado Murray (Harbour View FC), Jahshaun Anglin (Harbour View FC), Nicholas Hamilton (Harbour View FC), Okeemo Jones (Chapleton Maroons), Malachi Douglas (Chapleton Maroons), Dujuan Richards (Phoenix Academy), Jason Wright (Molynes United).
The sessions will commence at 3:00pm.
The Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) released a statement on Saturday congratulating Khadija Shaw on her stellar year for Manchester City in the FA Women’s Super League (WSL) season.
Shaw scored 15 goals for City in the calendar year and is currently joint top of the goal-scoring charts for the 2022-23 season with eight.
“The JFF heartily congratulates national captain Khadija Shaw for ending the calendar year 2022 as the second highest scorer in the Barclays Women's Premier League with 15 goals. You are indeed fabulous! Our hope is that you will remain healthy and be even more lethal in the new year. We wish you all the success in your endeavors in 2023!”
Shaw’s season will resume on January 15 when Manchester City takes on West Ham United.
The Jamaica Football Federation (JFF), as a part of its outreach programme, has partnered with Jamballers and IRIE FM to bring Christmas cheer to selected past players and administrators as the Yuletide season rolls in.
Through the efforts of JFF staff member Beverly Melbourne of Jamballers, gift baskets including gear and other items have been presented to former FIFA Referee Dwight Royal, who has been incapacitated after an accident in Santa Cruz a few years ago. The gifts to him were presented by Patrick Malcolm, President of the St Elizabeth Football Association.
Presentations were also made to former league director of the JFF, Bob West, who is in a nursing home in Mandeville while former national player and Reno FC stalwart Boysie Nicholson, who has been ill for some years, was visited earlier this week.
"The JFF recognizes the invaluable contribution that these persons have made to development of football in Jamaica, and we thought it necessary to participate in this small gesture to recognize them and bring some cheer in this yuletide season,” said JFF President Michael Ricketts.
Ten people are to be presented with gifts with the final set to be done at Zipp FM’s offices in Half-Way-Tree on December 14.
“It is a blessing to be able to move about and interact with these noble people,” Melbourne said.
“They would have given their best for the country and for football and we want to put a smile on their faces and show them that they are not forgotten."
Jamaica Football Federation President Michael Ricketts is hopeful that the Reggae Girlz will make it out of the first round at next year’s FIFA Women’s World Cup in Australia and New Zealand.
“I personally want us to go beyond the first round,” said Ricketts when speaking to SportsMax.TV.
It will be a tough task for the girls who were drawn in Group F alongside powerhouses France and Brazil as well as either Chinese Taipei, Panama, Papua New Guinea or Paraguay. They kick-off their World Cup campaign against the French in Sydney on July 23.
Jamaica will host the Paraguayans for two friendlies in Montego Bay on Thursday and Kingston on Sunday. Ricketts says these games are designed to prepare the girls for the type of opposition they will have to overcome if they are to make noise in Australia and New Zealand.
“We play two games against Paraguay. One in Montego Bay and one in Kingston. It’s a part of our preparation process,” he said.
“We just want some good results. It’s not all about winning but the coaches certainly want to establish a philosophy and a style of play that would make them competitive when they go to the World Cup,” he added.
Ricketts also said that we can expect more friendlies to be scheduled for the girls in the new year.
“We will have discussions with the coaches when we get to Montego Bay just to get an idea of exactly who they would want to play or which teams they would want to engage and then we’ll be having discussions with teams coming up for the February FIFA window.”
The Catherine Hall Sports Complex will play host to the first Paraguay friendly at 8:00pm local time while the second game kicks off at 6:00pm on Sunday at the National Stadium.
JAMECO Equipment Company Limited (JAMECO), a subsidiary of the Stewart’s Automotive Group, sponsored a 27-seater bus to the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) in response to the recent call from President Michael Ricketts for more corporate support.
On Tuesday, November 8, 2022, at the Jaguar Land Rover Showroom on Arthur Wint Drive in Kingston, the King Long bus, valued at JMD$7.3 million and branded in the national colours, was handed over to the JFF.
In attendance were JFF President Michael Ricketts, General Secretary Dennis Chung as well as JAMECO General Manager Brian Pengelley.
JAMECO becomes the exclusive official transportation sponsor of Jamaica’s National Football Teams through this arrangement with the JFF. With the largest fleet in Jamaica, the management company is the preferred, top-tiered, full-service supplier of motor vehicles, construction equipment and consumables for many consumers.
“The JFF had lost their last bus and they didn’t have anything to transport the teams. We became aware of their appeal to Corporate Jamaica to support the teams and we had a vehicle here that we thought would suit their needs,” said Pengelley.
This recent backing by Stewarts Automotive Group is the latest manifestation of its support to the JFF. Since 1998 when Jamaica’s Reggae Boyz historically qualified for the FIFA World Cup in France, Stewart’s Automotive Group has been providing transportation and financial support to the JFF.
In 2012, under a renewed and expanded sponsorship valued at JMD$30 million, Stewart’s Automotive supplied the JFF with two vehicles.
Newly appointed JFF General Secretary Dennis Chung highlighted that Stewart’s Automotive’s support of the JFF over the years has been key to the continued development of local football.
“Stewart's has always been a very strong supporter of the JFF and Jamaica’s football and has been, therefore, instrumental in our development over the years, to where the JFF is an iconic brand internationally,” he said.
For a year, JFF will provide a driver and fuel, while the bus will be fully insured and maintained by JAMECO with an option to renew.
Pengelley is hopeful that JAMECO’s gesture will inspire others in Corporate Jamaica to support national teams.
“We are hoping that the rest of Corporate Jamaica will see that we are jumping in to support and will bring to the party whatever they can. For us, it’s a matter of nationalism and playing our part in building Jamaica and its sporting fraternity,” he said.
Chung expressed his gratitude at the donation.
“The JFF is grateful to Stewart's for the donation of the bus, which they have also graciously fully wrapped in the JFF colours.”
This donation comes at an opportune time as this is an especially critical period as Jamaica’s Senior Women’s team has qualified for their second consecutive FIFA Women’s World Cup and will be facing Paraguay in two international friendlies in the coming days.
“This will get a far way in assisting the various national football teams as transportation is one of the most important ingredients in developing a successful football programme. Immediately, this provides assistance to the senior women's team, which has two matches against Paraguay on the 10th and 13th of November, as they prepare for their historic second consecutive qualification for the World Cup next year.”
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The technical staff of Jamaica’s Senior Women’s football team have signed one-year contracts with the Jamaica Football Federation.
Goalkeeper Andre Blake has been added to the Reggae Boyz squad selected to play Argentina on September 27.
The 31-year-old Reggae Boyz’s captain exclusion from the squad had prompted speculation that the players’ remarks on social media suggesting that the hiring of a new coach would change nothing for the current administration.
The Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) announced on Saturday that it has joined forces with sportswear giants Adidas.
“The Jamaica Football Federation is proud to announce that sportswear giant Adidas will equip all Jamaican National Football teams beginning in January 2023. The partnership, which is built on cultivating and supporting talent and the joy that football can bring, will include major tournaments such as the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup, 2024 Summer Olympics and the 2026 FIFA World Cup,” the JFF said in a statement.
President of the JFF Michael Ricketts said, “We are incredibly proud to announce this unprecedented partnership with Adidas and are looking forward to achieving great things together.”
“The partnership will support the JFF’s effort to develop Jamaica’s football at all levels and will facilitate further success at the professional level in the years to come. The JFF is now a part of the Adidas portfolio of international federations, joining giants such as The DFB (Germany), RFEF (Spain), AFA (Argentina), FIGC (Italy) and the RBFA (Belgium),” Ricketts added.
General Manager of Adidas Global Football Nick Craggs said “We are delighted to be announcing this long partnership with the Jamaica Football Federation.”
“The country’s potential on the pitch-of which the consecutive World Cup qualifications of the Women’s team is a testament-along with the richness and global relevance of its culture, which resonates far beyond football and Jamaica’s borders, make it a great fit to join our Adidas International Federations family. We look forward to celebrating many achievements together while contributing to the progress and future of Jamaican football at all levels of the game,” he added.
“The past doesn’t equal the future, and the future of Jamaican football is looking bright,” said CEO of Business 2 Sports Group Marlon Gilbert-Roberts who, alongside sports lawyer Jonathan Himpe and Fitzroy Simpson, was one of the architects of this historic deal.
Jamaica’s senior men's football team, the Reggae Boyz, is set to play Morocco, Qatar and Ghana in a four-team tournament to run from August 20-26, 2022.
The Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) issued a statement on Tuesday congratulating the Reggae Girlz on their qualification to a second consecutive World Cup.
The Girlz secured their spot in Australia and New Zealand next year with a 4-0 win over Haiti in Mexico on Monday.
“The Jamaica Football Federation wholeheartedly congratulates the Senior Women’s National Team, the Reggae Girlz, for their qualification to successive FIFA Women’s World Cups,” the Federation said to start the statement.
The statement continues: “Their creation of history, once again, has been due their unquestionable strength of purpose, character, determination, unity and patriotism. We commend and lift them up to Jamaica as living example of what is possible even when tremendous challenges abound. The JFF thanks and congratulates the entire technical staff, led by Head Coach Lorne Donaldson who had the team together less than three weeks before the start of the tournament. Finally, none of this would have been possible without our partners, the Bob Marley Foundation, the Reggae Girlz Foundation, the Ministry of Sports and all the well-wishers and supporters. We wish the team further success in their remaining games beginning with the semi-final fixture against Canada on Thursday, 14th.”
President of the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) Michael Ricketts was candid in offering his thoughts on the tenure of former JFF General Secretary Dalton Wint which came to an end on Monday.
Wint tendered his resignation in the wake of an administrative nightmare which saw the Reggae Boyz being stranded in Suriname after their Concacaf Nations League encounter on Saturday.
The team was expected to return to Jamaica on Saturday night for the return fixture on Tuesday but were unable to after the JFF had failed to make proper arrangements. The players ended up arriving in Jamaica at 7:15am on Monday.
“In a meeting in Suriname, all the players gathered and briefly called Mr. Wint and myself and said that the situation as it is now is that they have gotten a mandate from all the members that they will not work with Mr. Wint and they’re insisting that he tenders his resignation,” Ricketts outlined in an interview with Nationwide Radio on Tuesday before pinpointing why the players wanted Wint gone.
“They cited incompetence and, for whatever reason, there seems to be a very strained relationship,” he added.
Players had also informed Ricketts that they would not play in Tuesday's game if Wint wasn't removed from his post.
“I think Dalton, like all of us, did have his shortcomings and my only problem with him is that I don’t think he would’ve learned as quickly I would’ve liked,” Ricketts said when asked to sum up Wint's tenure as General Secretary.
“He was strident, loyal, and committed to what he was doing but, like I said, there could very well have been some shortcomings that he would have, not with the level of urgency that I would’ve liked, learned, and been able to correct,” Ricketts added.
While also explaining how unfortunate it is for players to be able to essentially dictate staff members' job status, Ricketts ultimately said Wint did what had to be done.
“In the interest of the sport, the own players, and this nation, Wint has decided to offer his resignation,” Ricketts said.
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