LEIGHTON LEVY, STAR Writer

When the Guinness Street Football Challenge kicks off next Tuesday, February 17 at Norma's Pub on Waltham Park Road in Kingston, it will do so with the full backing of football's local governing body the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF).

The Guinness Street Football Challenge will involve parish eliminations from which parish champions will be crowned. The respective parish champions then will play in a knockout format which will conclude by mid-June, with the winner taking home about US$4000 and the right to represent Jamaica in the Regional Finals to be held in Jamaica later that month.

The competition, the JFF said, can only help in the continued development of football in Jamaica and the region.

"One of the things that the JFF likes about the Guinness Street Football competition is that it heavily involves communities. It also gives players who probably were otherwise not seen, to showcase their talent on a national level since it involves all 14 parishes," said Garth Savory, the JFF's director of marketing.

Savory, who was speaking from Dubai, where he is currently on JFF business, said there were other benefits to the competition as well.

"The winner will play in the Caribbean finals, so it has not only local, but is also has a regional aspect to it. In terms of development, the JFF believes that football is for everyone, therefore, by Guinness putting on this competition, it is helping with development of football because the players are now getting a chance to play against other talented young men from across the island and the region."

The Guinness Street Football Challenge is played in about 10 Caribbean countries, including Jamaica and Haiti which joined this year. Already, Trinidad, Guyana, Barbados, St Vincent and the Grenadines, St Lucia, Antigua and Barbuda, St Kitts, and Dominica have staged competitions over the past three years.