ON THE RADAR, SPORTS | August 31, 2019
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| (Image Source; TieBreaker Times) |
Many
Philippine basketball fans have considered two of the most popular leagues in the
country today as rivals in bringing fast-paced local hard court action that can
be enjoyed by anyone at home or where it is taking place and I'm talking about
the Philippine Basketball Association (PBA), Asia's premiere pay-to-play
professional basketball league, and the Maharlika Pilipinas Basketball League
(MPBL) which is founded by Philippine senator and eight-division world boxing
champion Manny "Pacman" Pacquiao. But, to be honest, I would agree
with local sports critics that these two leagues are not to be claimed as rivals.
Both
PBA and MPBL have one thing in mind and that is to give an opportunity for aspirants
from different parts of the country to showcase their skills and prowess in the
big leagues as well as to further exert efforts to promote and encourage people
to support the local basketball scene in any way possible. In fact, on one rare
but memorable occasion, the two leagues have recently joined forces to prevent
their games against one common conception and that would be none other than
game fixing where one part of the game is questioned due to various factors,
more particularly poor officiating. Their unity against such conception in
basketball is one strong proof that these so-called rival leagues can co-exist
and work together for any common cause that can hurt the reputation of the
sport and the players.
As
reported on Manila Standard, PBA chairman Ricky Vargas and commissioner Willie Marcial have met with Pacquiao and MPBL commissioner Kenneth Duremdes to talk about their plans in eliminating and eradicating game fixing while monitoring the players, coaches, team officials and even referees during their games. It was all witnessed by Bacoor Strikers owner Chaye Cabal-Revilla and excited for the joint initiative of the two leagues against one common conception for the good of fair sportsmanship. This is one strong proof that these leagues have the same objective of further promoting basketball in the Philippines and coordinate with each other for the good of fair sportsmanship in the foreseeable future.
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Digital combat sports streaming platform FITE TV has officially announced its partnership with IMPACT Wrestling, a subsidiary of Anthem Sports and Entertainment, that will bring the ladder's IMPACT Plus subscription video-on-demand (SVOD) service to its users giving them access to a massive content library from one of the most sought-after action-packed organizations in the world of professional wrestling today. FITE fans can now subscribe to IMPACT Plus on FITE.TV and the official FITE mobile app for instant access to more than 3,000 hours of IMPACT Wrestling content, groundbreaking original productions, reality shows, documentaries, live monthly specials and more for only US$7.99 a month or US$71.99 per year. They can fully enjoy their favorite shows with the help of FITE's high-quality streaming capabilities while taking advantage of the platform's intriguing features.
On the
other hand, Major League Wrestling (MLW) has reforged its partnership with FITE
which allows the ladder to stream MLW pay-per-view (PPV) events to various
multiple platforms around the world. The newly-forged partnership will
officially commence on MLW's first PPV event, Saturday Night Superfight, which
will be held on November 2, 2019 at the Cicero Stadium in Chicago, Illinois.
Pro wrestling and combat sports fans can now pre-order the upcoming PPV event on FITE for
only US$19.95 starting Friday, September 20th and see for themselves why MLW is highly regarded as one of the
fastest-growing professional wrestling promotions in today's modern world.
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Professional
wrestling fans in the Philippines can now enjoy the hottest and most exciting
action on their small screens as IMPACT Wrestling makes its long awaited return
to Philippine television after more than a decade of its absence in the local
television scene and is slated to reintroduce itself to the Filipino wrestling
community through its new home in the country.
Through
a press statement recently released on IMPACTWRESTLING.COM and shared on social
media, the subsidiary of Anthem Sports and Entertainment announced a new
broadcast deal with TAP Digital Media Ventures Corporation (TAPDMV) to air its
weekly flagship show IMPACT! across the country beginning September. Aside from
IMPACT! which will be airing every Saturday at 9:00 pm on Skycable channel 218,
TAP EDGE will also broadcast all of its annual major PPV events starting off
with Bound For Glory which will take place on October 20th at the Odeum Expo
Center in Chicago, Illinois.
"We
have seen tremendous engagement from our fans in the Philippines through IMPACT
Wrestling's digital and social media platforms," said IMPACT Wrestling president Ed Nordholm. "We
are excited to expand our presence in the Filipino market through our new broadcast
partnership with TAPDMV." "We are thrilled to bring IMPACT Wrestling
to the Philippines," said TAPDMV president and CEO Celinda De Guia. "Filipinos have always loved wrestling
and there's a renewed interest with the growing community of both new and longtime
wrestling fans in the country. Our plan is to make IMPACT Wrestling available
on our linear and OTT platforms."
On
the other hand, TAPDMV chief operating officer Peter Chanliong added that
IMPACT Wrestling presents the perfect fit for TAP EDGE and complements the
channel's lineup of combat sports and professional gaming content with the
newfound excitement and thrill it brings to wrestling fans around the world. With
this on hand, many old and new wrestling fans in the Philippines will start to
enjoy what IMPACT Wrestling has offered compared to the usual and discover for
themselves why it is regarded as the hottest and most exciting two hours of professional
wrestling action anywhere around the globe. Believe me, I already did and you should
be as well.
