Football clubs grapple with unpaid wages
2026-03-24 - 00:25
A meeting of the T&T Premier Football League (TTPFL) and all Tier 1 clubs was scheduled to be held last night to discuss the conclusion of the season. However, clubs were eager to raise urgent concerns regarding unpaid wages, which they have not received for February and are now heading into late March. Terminex La Horquetta Rangers and Club Sando FC both confirmed the non-payment of salaries for February. On Monday, Dave Quamina, the Rangers coach, said that although the non-payment has placed a strain on his players’ ability to get to training and back, his club has been managing the situation. “I get six points in the last three games, but under the circumstances where my club has not been paid the required subvention, where my team players have been depending on to get to training, and to pay bills or whatever. But despite that, we’re still going through, we know government change or whatever, and we’re going to be still fighting because it’s a hard battle at the bottom of the League. I think it’s four teams, five teams fighting to stay afloat in the league, not to come as low as second to last or third to last,” Quamina explained. Quamina further assured that despite all the financial woes, the players are battling and remaining professional by showing up for training. “Although the in-game pay or the club’s in-game pay has yet to come from the subvention, they’re battling,” he added. When contacted, T&T Football Association president Kieron Edwards said the teams were not paid for only a month. TTPFL clubs receive grant funding from the government specifically for salaries on a monthly basis. Eddison Dean also confirmed that his team was not paid, and assured that they are waiting on payments for two months, including February and the month of March, for which payment will come closer to the end of the month. “I could only talk for my team, and we’re pretty good because we’re trying to do something, so it’s not affecting my team really. We don’t have a sponsor, but we are looking for a sponsor,” Dean said. It is now down to the final round of matches for the season, with a fierce battle for the top position between defending champions Defence Force Elite and Club Sando FC, who are separated by a single point. The army/coast guard/civilian combination team leads the 12-team standings with 49 points, with Club Sando FC in second position on 48 points. A similar battle faces clubs in the bottom half of the standings as teams fight to stay afloat and avoid relegation. Quamina assured that questions about the non-payment of salaries were definitely expected to be raised during the meeting.