Should we take Newin Chidchob's claims that soccer is consuming his life much more than politics with a grain of salt? That depends on how much you trust the guy. We can't, however, question the passion of a fast-growing Thai population that for the past two years has changed the landscape of domestic football beyond recognition. So much has been transformed that taking a real look at the domestic game now will feel like you have been asleep for a decade.
In a span of three years, Thailand's Premier League has turned from Asia's sick child to an energetic adolescent raring to go all the way. Matches have recorded average attendance of several thousands, with games between popular teams boasting between 10,000-20,000 viewers. Rich sponsors are still pitching in as you read this and politics has paid serious attention. Newin, for one, is aspiring to be Thai soccer's biggest name, which as things are going is not a remote possibility.
What happened to a football league that the Asian Football Confederation had threatened to disown three or four years ago? That threat in itself was a tipping point, but we also have some other things and people to thank, including Newin, whatever his motives were.
The painstaking pioneering by Chon Buri FC, the takeover of Muang Thong United by Siam Sport Publishing and Newin's obsession with Buri Ram PEA have all contributed to the dramatic transformation of the Thailand Premier League. They brought quality, big financial resources and sophistication to the game. More importantly, though, they succeeded where others before them had failed for decades - creating real fans with real and raw passion.
Chon Buri FC was the first to attract large-scale and ardent support. Siam Sport's involvement provided an effective publicity machinery for the league and Newin helped promote what every successful footballing nation requires - local club rivalries. No more getting stuck in a chicken-and-egg situation. Thailand's domestic football now has all the ingredients necessary for the next big step.
Klong Toey residents, wearing Thai Port FC shirts, walk to their stadium every other week to roar on their team. Clubs' jerseys sell for between Bt400 and Bt800, an unthinkable phenomenon given the fact that it's still anything goes when it comes to the dress code for the Thai national team. Big Premier League matches can cash in as much as Bt1 million each in ticket and merchandise sales.
Most of the 16 Premier League teams have at least five foreign players each. They are still B-grade players - from Africa, South Korea and Japan - but competition is driving both the prices and quality up, with certain stars getting six-digit monthly salaries. Thailand is still not Japan or South Korea when it comes to breeding talent, but certain scouts from Europe are known to have cast one eye on the Kingdom.
It will be unnatural not to doubt Newin. Yet if he's using football as some kind of tool to fulfil his political ambition, he has done well in hiding his true agenda and in showing his passion for the game. After all, he's talking all sorts of things that a pretentious non-football fan wouldn't be able to think of, let alone say it in the first place. When his team lost, he said, it hurt more than having a mega-project turned down by the prime minister. On one hand, I question him. On the other hand, I know what he means.
Here's hoping Newin has found his real calling. If that is not what's happening, at least we have something to thank him for. Thailand's Premier League has got off the ground, and that was unimaginable just two years ago. If Newin is to bring politics into the game, it will be like bringing down your own sandcastle. If the man who says that when the clock strikes 3 he's off to see his players in their practice routine and won't pick up any phone call wants to do that, there will be little we can do about it.
All we can do is hope that, while we were watching Liverpool, Manchester United, Arsenal and Chelsea, something happened not only to our domestic football, but also one of Thailand's most controversial political figures.