Could Pakistan monetize volley ball?

Could Pakistan monetize volleyball?

Profit report

In August 2021, Pakistanis were on the edge of their seats. Thousands of miles away in Tokyo Japan, Arshad Nadeem from Mian Channu was going to throw the most important javelin of his entire life. Two Pakistanis came painfully close to a place at the winner’s podium at the

2021 Tokyo Olympics. Arshad Nadeem finished fifth in the javelin throw and Talha Talib from Gujranwala finished fifth in the weightlifting category.

Pakistan as a country has one sports obsession - cricket. Fans of the game are diehard, talent comes in a continuous stream, and the sport has been successfully monetised. The problem is that it is just cricket that has reached that status. Formerly popular sports like hockey, and globally popular sports like football have all languished in Pakistan with the country not performing well and in turn players being regularly disheartened because of a lack of opportunities.

What the 2021 Olympics proved, however, was that if the stakes are high enough there is more than a good chance of people all across Pakistan having their eyes glued to television screens and filling stadiums to watch Pakistani athletes throw javelins or lift weights.

With the interest definitely there in other sports, is there a way to get people invested in a sport other than cricket, and make money along the way? Perhaps the one sport that is the top contender to go the route of cricket in Pakistan is volleyball. The six-a-team net-sport has a unique place in Pakistan’s sporting scene. For starters, our national team is one of the most unpredictable volleyball nations of Asia.

The team’s growth has never been consistent, mainly due to financial reasons. The team mostly plays inside Asia, and there is very little regulated competition within Pakistan and unlike in large volleyball playing nations Pakistan does not have its own league. However, a step may just have been taken towards making this a reality.

The Pakistan Volleyball Federation has recently entered into a partnership with

Engro to launch the Engro Volleyball

Development Program. Under the program, the vision is to eventually get Pakistan to have broad representation in the Olympics and other major events. With countries like India and China playing against Pakistan, a lot of interest can be developed in the game. Currently, volleyball is a sport that has a very popular local circuit with players in small cities being celebrities in a very similar fashion to how tape ball cricket leagues and players also thrive in small cities with large tournaments being organised. This is particularly true in the KP region, where volleyball tournaments are a massive source of entertainment.

Essentially, the raw materials for making volleyball a popular sport that also plays its players and patrons well are all there. What is needed is concentrated effort towards developing talent and promoting the game. Pakistan’s Iranian coach Rahman Mohammadirad pointed out in an interview that Pakistan needs much better facilities and equipment for volleyball training purposes. If the infrastructure is boosted it will also help the country to host international volleyball events.

That is why the PVF’s partnership with Engro could prove fruitful. To mark the launch of this program, a signing ceremony and press conference were held at a local hotel in Lahore. The occasion was attended by PVF Chairman Chaudhary Muhammad Yaqoob, and PVF President Ch Iftikhar Ahmed, Engro Corporation President & CEO Ghias Khan, Engro Fertilizers VP Manufacturing Syed Shahzad Nabi, and Engro Corporation Head of Marketing & Communications Umber Ansari, among other officials of Engro and the PVF.

At the launch, the two sides announced that as part of the development program, Engro will assist the PVF in setting up a National Training Camp, including the appointment of qualified foreign coaches. Regional training camps will also be established at different places in the country to facilitate the local talent for its grooming. These training camps and competitions of the Pakistan national team against strong foreign teams will enable PVF to develop a team of talented athletes who may represent Pakistan in international competitions, such as the Olympics, World Championship, and World League.

“Our partnership with the Pakistan Volleyball Federation marks a new chapter in the development and promotion of volleyball in the Country. The Pakistan Volleyball Team has shown its mettle time and again and beaten top ranked teams such as China, Korea, Thailand, India and even Japan,” said Ghias Khan – President & CEO of Engro Corporation.

The program could be a catalyst for the sport if it manages to provide access to the best-in-class coaches and training practices. This is also the aim of the PVF, whose Chairman, Chaudhary Muhammad Yaqoob, said that the collaboration could be a gamechange.

“Pakistan Volleyball Federation in collaboration and support of Engro Corporation has planned to develop volleyball at grass-root level to make it even more popular and spread it in all nook and corners of the country. We have a common dream to take the Pakistan team to World Olympics 2028 in Los Angeles by moving up gradually from Asia to global level. On behalf of the Pakistan Volleyball Federation, I am extremely grateful to Engro and Mr. Ghias Khan for his generous help and support to this game of the masses. n

IMF bailout conditional to Nawaz Sharif remaining in London, PM reveals

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Tuesday said that he was informed by Finance Minister Miftah Ismail that Pakistan could receive $2 billion from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) after the final condition of ensuring former premier Nawaz Sharif remaining in London is met.

While addressing the ‘Turnaround Pakistan’ conference organised by the Ministry of Planning and Development, PM Shehbaz said that the country had met all other conditions with just the small matter of making the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) supremo stay in the United Kingdom the only clause remaining.

“Miftah Ismail relayed a message in the morning saying that we will hopefully be receiving not $1bn from the IMF, but $2bn, and all we have to do is ensure that Nawaz Sharif remains in London,” the premier revealed.

“Miftah Ismail also said that the IMF wants Ishaq Dar to remain in London, to which I replied, ‘no, it does not’” Shehbaz added.

The premier stressed the need for all quarters to work towards self-reliance, which guarantees political and economic independence.

I am working day and night to ensure self-reliance, along with political and economic independence, for myself,” the PM said.

“But of course, it’s easier said than done.”

Dar sahab can come and take the easy decisions now that I’ve taken the difficult ones: Miftah

Finance Minister Miftah Ismail on Monday said that Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) senior leader Ishaq Dar can return to the country and make the easy moves now that all the tough ones have been made.

Talking to The Dependent, Miftah said Dar’s return to the country would not bother him and he would be happy to relinquish his position since that is what he was tasked to do all along.

“I’d welcome Dar sahab coming back to take the easy decisions, now that I’ve taken all the difficult ones,” Miftah said in an exclusive interview.

“Of course, this is not to deny that he took the decisions taken so far as well, only that they were supposed to be pinned on me according to the plan,” the finance minister added.

Further emphasising his reverence for the senior party leader, Miftah Ismail said that Ishaq Dar is his elder and worthy of all the respect.

“But, at least, he’s not my elder brother. Some of our party leaders have had to sacrifice their own existence because their elder brother has had political mood swings over the decades,” the finance minister maintained.