The Malaysia Cup, which started last week, is 100 years old. Many fans treat it as the most prestigious football competition in the country. But is that really so?
In recent years, in terms of importance, the Malaysia Cup has fallen behind the Super League and even the FA Cup.
That's because the winner of the Super League gets to play in the Asian Champions League, the highest level of football competition in the continent, while the FA Cup champion qualifies for the second-tier Asian Football Confederation (AFC) Cup.
Sorry, the Malaysia Cup winner doesn't get invited to the Asian ball. It's the same in Europe, where league status is more important.
For example, the top four teams in the English Premier League get to play in the prized Champions League, while the FA Cup winner and the League Cup winner qualify for only the second-tier Europa League.
The Malaysia Cup was incepted in 1921, the Super League originated from the Premier League which was introduced in 1994, and the FA Cup came up in 1990.
Johor Darul Ta'zim (JDT), without doubt the best club in Malaysia, sees the Super League as the most important of the three national competitions. And JDT has won the Super League title for the last eight years.
As for the Malaysia Cup, JDT won it only twice in the past 10 years. Many fans wonder why JDT didn't win the Malaysia Cup as often as they should, considering that they are head and shoulders above the others.
The pundits reckon JDT is not so interested in the Malaysia Cup. It's clear where the Southern Tigers' priority lies.
But yet, we are faced with a Malaysia Cup conundrum: a tournament which on paper offers little "value" but yet has something priceless — a fascinating history whose original trophy was shipped in by a British warship in 1921.
For only this year, the Malaysian Football League (MFL) scrapped the FA Cup due to the Covid-19 pandemic, but not the Malaysia Cup.
Indeed no-one would want to cancel the Malaysia Cup, especially when it's celebrating its 100th anniversary. And for this time, the Malaysia Cup winner will get a ticket to the AFC Cup.
In fact, the MFL planned to have a nation-wide Malaysia Cup centenary roadshow for fans to share in the rich history of the competition but it did not get approval from the government due to Covid-19.
Despite the advent of the Super League and the FA Cup, the magic of the Malaysia Cup has never diminished. Many teams and fans still see the Malaysia Cup as "more special" than the Super League and FA Cup.
Some states even declared a public holiday for their teams winning the Malaysia Cup, like what the Perak government did when its team won in 2018.
Now with JDT making the Super League a one-horse race, most of their rivals are looking to the Malaysia Cup as the best trophy to focus on, one that would redeem their pride.
And for many fans, growing old with the Malaysia Cup, with their teams winning the nostalgic trophy is an amazing feeling.
