American Football Comes to the Philippines Through Arena Ball Philippines
ABP and the American Football game in the Philippines started with a dream of ABP President, Bernardo “Dodi” Palma II. For years, he had wanted to play football. What fuelled his desire to bring the sport to the Philippines was a life-changing moment during a recent trip to the US, when he had the chance to watch a live football game. He swore that he will bring football to the Philippines to let Filipinos watch, feel, play and enjoy what is truly a spectacular sport.
With the help of Filipino and American partners, the dream is now a reality. ArenaBall Philippines (ABP) is the first and only SEC‐registered corporation to introduce American or tackle football in the Philippines. ABP is driven to emulate the success of the sport here.
It is not easy to introduce a new sport in the Philippines but for sure with a game that also involves brute force and with qualities of Filipinos added to that, surely this sport will hold ground in the Philippines.
So what is Arena Ball?
Actually all I know is that this is American Foortball and the proper term for it was not known to me. According to ABP's official website, "Arenaball or tackle football is the only team sport that involves legal, deliberate and controlled physical contacts such as takedowns, tackles, pushing and pulling. Think of the players as modern day gladiators battling it out to get the ball to the opponent’s territory or end zone and score. This offers hardcore action and satisfaction for sports fans and enthusiasts!"
