Where's The Passion?

This is an interesting article by Jason Dasey in www.soccernet.com. If you watch ESPN Sportcentre you'd probably know who Jason Dasey is. Any comments?

ASIAN FOOTBALL'S TRUE PASSION
The row over Manchester United's now aborted trip to Malaysia provides a revealing insight into the true priorities in south-east Asian football.Manchester United were invited to play a Malaysian XI in Kuala Lumpur just two days before the Asian Cup final in Jakarta. But the English champions reluctantly cancelled after pressure from the region's governing body, the AFC.
The Football Association of Malaysia (FAM) had unsuccessfully argued that Kuala Lumpur's obligations to the Asian Cup would end when it hosted a semi-final on July 25th, two days before the Man United game.

However, an earlier agreement which Malaysian officials signed with the AFC promised not to hold any football events that might deflect attention away from the Asian Cup - starting 10 days before the first match and ending three days after the final.

The decision infuriated local fans who were looking forward to the prospect of watching stars like Wayne Rooney and Cristiano Ronaldo to help celebrate the 50th anniversary of the nation's independence. 'In Malaysia, we are passionate about football and cannot get enough of it,' one fan told Malaysia's New Straits Times. 'You must remember than many of us cannot afford to visit Old Trafford.'

The reality is that south-east Asian sports fans are far more interested in the upcoming English Premier League season than they are in the region's showcase international tournament. And that's despite the fact that the quadrennial event is being co-hosted by four south-east Asian nations - Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam and Indonesia - for the first time.

The region has long been dominated by the powerhouses of north Asia - Japan and South Korea - and by the wealthy, oil-rich nations from west Asia, including Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. No south-east Asian country has ever gone close to making to the World Cup Finals and only Thailand and Indonesia qualified for the last Asian Cup in China.

Truth be told, very few pundits expect any of the four host nations, especially Malaysia, to make it past the group stages, despite the huge advantage of playing at home. South-east Asian football has learned through tough experiences not to raise its expectations too high and, after all, there's always the escapism of the EPL, the UEFA Champions League and the Spanish Primera Liga.

For five years in Singapore, I witnessed the passion of football fans, who would religiously follow their favourite European team on cable television, or in open-air bars, brightly dressed in their teams' colours. The seven-hour time difference with the U.K. means guaranteed Saturday night entertainment with a convenient 10pm kick off. Of course, their enthusiasm is often spiced up by betting - both legal and illegal - which generates millions of dollars across all of south-east Asia.

By contrast, Singapore's S-League, which runs March to November to straddle over two European seasons, has a modest following, generally with crowds of four thousand of less. An average player is rarely paid more than US$2500 per month, which is about the same as a public school teacher.

At an international level, Singapore tasted success when it was crowned south-east champions by beating Thailand in the final of the ASEAN Championship in February. Even so, Singapore's FIFA ranking is a lowly 131 and they failed to qualify for the Asian CupLast September, I was at Singapore's National Stadium when they faced China in a crucial qualifier which they needed to win to keep alive their chances of advancing to the Asian Cup finals.

Over a hectic 90 minutes, although they were outplayed by a technically superior Chinese side that dominated possession and squandered a host of chances, Singapore escaped with a lucky 0-0 draw. Even though the result meant the Lions were effectively eliminated from the Asian Cup finals, the Singapore players did a triumphant lap of honour to celebrate sharing the spoils with a strong north Asian nation.

It showed me the gap - perceived or otherwise - between south-east Asian football and the rest of the region.
You can't blame overseas clubs like Manchester United for looking to make profitable, self-serving trips and for not being aware of regional tournaments. But the AFC was totally within its rights to pull the welcome mat from below the Red Devils' feet as it strives to create a product that south-east Asia should care about.