Foster aims to grow Cavalier brand overseas

Newly appointed Cavalier FC chairman Ryan Foster says that his objective is building an international network to strengthen the opportunities for young players overseas.

Foster, who is also chief executive officer of the Jamaica Olympic Association, says that while focused on ensuring that Cavalier's business is sound, he believes that he can play a role in elevating its profile in the region.

"I believe in my experience in terms of what they indicated what they wanted from a chairman," Foster told STAR Sports. "We want to ensure that we develop a sustainable business model to support Cavalier, not only in the Red Stripe Premier League (RSPL) but in terms of making Cavalier one of the premier regional clubs and ultimately to matriculate some of our footballers beyond just the Premier League."

In outlining the long-term plans for the team, Foster says that the focus would be on attracting international partners, emphasising that the club cannot depend solely on local sponsorship to survive.

International sponsor

"One of the things that we have to ensure is to develop an international sponsor to support what it is that our goals and objectives [are]," he said. "And outside of getting that international sponsor, we want to ensure that our players play and represent at a particular level, which would then attract international clubs to come to Cavalier.

"We want to ensure to capture and to form partnerships with other clubs whether in USA, Canada, UK and in wider Europe. Those are the partnerships that we are working on."

His immediate objectives will focus on preparations for the upcoming RSPL season. Health protocols are expected to be introduced pending approval from local authorities because of the COVID-19 pandemic. He says that recent sales of players to overseas leagues would be beneficial to their operations for the 2020/21 campaign.

"It will allow us some flexibility in terms of the budget but we will make the necessary amendments," he said. "We have to be a very flexible club. We have to make sure that we are operating within our budget and we don't exceed our respective cost.

"We are now revamping the budget, taking into consideration all of the limits and protocols that are now in place."