Nii Ayi Bimbo is a Ghanaian coach based in the Philippines who runs a Football Academy with some Filipinos. Ayi Bimbo moved to the Philippines in 2007, and he shared some struggles as a young footballer with SVTV Africa.
The coach mentioned that he initially travelled to Singapore before moving to the Philippines. According to him, football was the least popular sport in the Philippines then. Eventually, Ayi Bimbo got a scholarship to study at one of their top universities, where his journey began.
“Even in the school, foreigners have to stay in school for two years before they are allowed to play in the league. I played for three years before I got a chance to play in some clubs.
Later in 2010, football in the Philippines began to grow. I was the first Ghanaian to play in the top league here. There were two Sudanese and a few Nigerian,” he told DJ Nyaami.
Ayi Bimbo stated that he took some courses while playing football because he was interested in coaching football after retirement. Also, he set up a football agency to help Ghanaian footballers play in other countries.
“I have a football academy that I run full time with some Filipinos. I’m also a conditioning coach for a school sports team,” he added.
Speaking about the job availability for foreign nationals in the Philippines, Ayi Bimbo indicated that foreigners require work visas and must be well educated because some menial jobs require a high school certificate.
“If you marry a Filipino, you can use your wife’s documents to set up a business. You won’t get a permanent visa but a Temporary Resident Visa. It is tough to get a resident permit in the Philippines. It is no place for hustlers,” he said.
According to Bimbo, there are about 200 Ghanaians in the Philippines, and most of them come as footballers.
Kindly watch the full interview below;
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