GAB: volleyball players must secure licenses as pros

Games and Amusements Board (GAB) chair Abraham Mitra is not backing down on requiring volleyball players in the Philippine Superliga (PSL) and Premier Volleyball League (PVL) to secure licenses from the government agency regulating professional sports.

This, despite both leagues resorting to the courts and obtaining a temporary restraining order to derail the GAB.

“Everybody knows that these players get paid and they are earning a living through volleyball,” said Mitra, the former Palawan governor.

“At first, I thought I managed to convince them (both leagues) to professionalize because it would raise the profile not only of the players but of the leagues they are playing in,” Mitra told Inquirer.

Obviously, those talks bogged down.

Mitra said the PSL and the PVL were comparable to the PBA, whose players are all licensed by the GAB as professionals.

Volleyball’s popularity in the country has grown by leaps and bounds because of these commercial leagues, with players being paid to play for teams that get a lot of media mileage through the form of television, radio, print and online media exposure.

However, PSL and PVL officials reportedly balked at the thought of having their players pay for licensing fees and being subjected to GAB regulations.

Starting last season, PSL had all of its players sign two-year contracts by their respective clubs, while the PVL employs players who are either still in college or already graduated.