THE Philippine Basketball Association (PBA) will remain in Metro Manila for the resumption of the Governors’ Cup once the government approves its request for a restart in the first week of February.
“As of now, we don’t have any plan of playing nearby provinces especially that we have a great chance to restart since Covid-19 cases are starting to decrease,” PBA Commissioner Willie Marcial told BusinessMirror on Tuesday.
Marcial has asked various local governments in Metro Manila to accommodate the Governors’ Cup resumption under controlled environments, as well as sought approval from the Inter-Agency Task Force on the Management of Emerging Infectious Diseases through the Games and Amusement Board.
He said that they have also asked the permission of the Metropolitan Manila Development Authority to restart the reason shuttered when infections spiked with the Covid-19 Omicron variant.
“We’re just waiting for their approval and hopefully we can resume by the first week of February,” he said.
Once approved, Marcial said the teams will be given 10 days to train collectively.
A total of 26 games were already played–including 16 with live fans at the Smart Araneta Coliseum—when the conference was indefinitely suspended last January 3.
The return of fans in the stands, Marcial said, will also depend on the conditions set by the LGUs.