As the top-tier Taiwan Football Premier League has seen growing interest from fans worldwide thanks to livestreaming since its season started on April 14, sports officials said that English-language commentary would continue to be broadcast this weekend and in the coming weeks.
After three rounds of play in the league, Taipower top the table following three wins in three matches for nine points.
Hang Yuan, Taiwan Steel Group and Taichung Futuro have all bolstered their rosters to mount challenges with the aim of breaking a stranglehold on the top by perennial powerhouses Taipower and Tatung.
Photo courtesy of the CTFA
Taiwan is one of the few nations with a top-division soccer competition, as most professional leagues have suspended play due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
All local matches are played behind closed doors without fans and officials of the CTFA governing body have enforced disease prevention measures, including checking the temperature of everyone entering stadiums, providing hand sanitizer, registering the personal information of everyone entering, placing limits on the number of workers and media, and issuing identification cards for access to certain areas.
Team officials have been ordered to monitor their players’ health conditions daily, and keep them from visiting night markets and other crowded places, CTFA secretary-general Fang Ching-jen said, adding that when not playing, players must wear a mask at all times when they leave their homes.
Broadcast agreements have been reached with Videoland Sports TV to televise the men’s Premier League and China Television System to air the women’s Mulan League, Fang said, adding that both TV networks are working with the CTFA to provide livestreams of matches via the YouTube channel CTFA.TV.
One match from each weekend’s Premier League fixtures is to feature English-language commentary, such as tomorrow’s 4pm match between Tatung and LHNTUS at Taipei Municipal Stadium.
Outside of Taiwan, English-language broadcasts of the three previous Premier League rounds garnered the most viewers from the UK, Italy and Japan, followed by Indonesia, Poland, Turkey, Hong Kong, Spain and the US, league officials said, adding that Taiwanese soccer is gaining fans abroad, who are likely starving for live action due to the pandemic.
While there has been much interest by fans in China, league official said that Chinese cannot view Premier League livestreams due to Beijing’s severe restrictions on Internet access, including YouTube.
In other Premier League action tomorrow, Taipower are to take on the Red Lions in Taoyuan, second-placed Hang Yuan are to host MCU at Fu Jen Catholic University in New Taipei City’s Sinjhuang District and Taiwan Steel Group are to face Taichung Futuro in Tainan.
All matches kick off at 4pm.
In the Mulan League, three third-round matches are scheduled for today at Hualien Stadium.
Defending champions Taichung Blue Whales are to take on Hang Yuan at 10am, followed by Kaohsiung Sunny Bank facing off with Taipei Bravo at 1pm and Hualien playing Inter Taoyuan at 4pm.
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