By REYNALD MAGALLON
TNT governor Ricky Vargas was re-elected as chairman of the PBA Board of Governors for the seventh time but this time, will have a new partner in taking the lead with new vice chairman Alfrancis Chua of Barangay Ginebra.
The board reconfirmed their belief on the leadership of Vargas following the election of officers during the league annual planning session at the Swissotel Nankai un Osaka.
“I’m privileged to stay one more year. So I thank the Board for their confidence,” said Vargas.
Chua is replacing Terrafirma governor Bobby Rosales who served as vice chairman in the last five seasons.
Aside from Vargas, also retained is Phoenix governor Raymond Zorilla as board treasurer while Atty. Ogie Narvasa is the new corporate secretary.
The board of governors also reaffirmed the position of the PBA commissioner Willie Marcial who will be serving as the league chieftain until Season 51.
The reconfirmation came at the heels of the league being reported by broadcast partners TV5 and Cignal TV as still the most watched sports program in the country.
TV5 president/CEO Guido Zaballero, CignalTV president/CEO Jane Basas and CignalTV first vice president for channels and content management Sienna Olaso made the presentation.
Data from US media research group Nielsen showed that the Filipinos watch the PBA more than any other sports programs with the league drawing 975,520 average viewers per game over the first six months of 2024.
In comparison, PVL had 313,040 average views while 218,400 for the UAAP, 218,400 for the NBA and 145,600 for the MPBL.
14 of the 20 top sports programs were PBA games with the Game 6 of the Meralco-San Miguel Philippine Cup title showdown, drawing 2.16 million viewers followed by Game 3 of the same series with 2.06 million.
Other sports programs making the top 20 were matches in the recent AVC Challenge Cup featuring Alas Pilipinas. Third was Alas’ game versus Kazakhstan and fourth was the national volley belles’ tiff with their Chinese counterparts.
While glad with the viewership turnout, Vargas recognized the need for the PBA to convert the viewership into live audiences.
“While it’s good to see these ratings, we want to bring the fans to the venue. We’re aiming to enhance fan experience at the start of the season,” said Vargas.
