The event titled 2016 PIDC-GCC Championship Cup is part of the series of programmes lined-up by the Philippine Embassy Doha and the United Filipino Organizations in Qatar (UFOQ) to mark the 118th Philippine Independence Day. The tournament is supported by Qatar Basketball Federation.

According to Pibaq President Pat Carido, it took them a month to prepare for the tournament which they intend to organise biennially. The event features Pibaq Falcons, the league's premier team including the best Filipino basketball players in Qatar.

"Pibaq Falcons has been preparing since March to recharge themselves after a recent defeat. The 2016 PIDC-GCC Championship Cup is supported by various Filipino organisations including Doha League for the operations and Shutterbugz as official photographer," Carido added.

The tournament will open on Thursday with a showdown between teams from Dubai and Damman at 9am. It will be followed by a game between Abu Dhabi and Doha at 10.30am. Another set of games will be held in the afternoon at 4pm.

The second day to be held at Al Sadd Sports Club will start with a match between the UAE representatives Abu Dhabi and Dubai. The battle for the third spot will take place on the same day at 2.30pm followed by the finals at 4pm.

"Philippine Airlines will be giving away four round-trip tickets during the event which will be limited only to current Philippine Airlines destinations in the GCC namely: Dammam, Jeddah, Riyadh, Kuwait, Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Doha. The players to be named MVP and Finals MVP will receive one round-trip ticket each. While two tickets will be raffled off to spectators," Carido said.

The event is sponsored by Ooredoo (official mobile carrier), Fraser Suites Doha (official hotel), M-Builders (official falcons banner), PGW Tailoring (official supplier), Alicafe, Travelex Currency Exchange, McDonald's Qatar, Brillo-Saladmaster, Nayong Filipino Restaurant and Boracay Filipino Restaurant.