“Dubai Open Football Academies Tournament”, the biggest of its kind, will be launched Saturday 7th Oct. 2023 at Dubai Sports City’s Stadiums and will continue up to 24th Feb. 2024.
The Tournament is organized by Dubai Sports Council (DSC) and the UAE Football Association, in collaboration with Inspiratus Co. (the Tournament’s host) & Delta Sports Events Co. (the operational partner of the event), and with participation of 5000 male & female players, representing 300 teams from 65 governmental & private academies. The event is held as part of DSC’s strategy to attract & develop sports talents.
The Tournament’s details were declared in a press conference, convened at DSC’s premises, and addressed by H.E. Saeed Hareb, the Secretary General of DSC / H.E. Mohammed Abdulla Bin Hazam Al-Dhaheri, the Secretary General of the UAE Football Association / Mr. Muneer Ahmed Al-Emam, President of Delta Co. / Mr. Daniel Petrovas, the CEO of Inspiratus Co.
The press conference was held in the presence of H.E. Khaimi Yarza, the Championships’ Manager in FIFA / H.E. Naser Aman Al-Rahma, Assistant Secretary general of DSC / Mr. Joan Cosco, Chairman of the FIFA Beach Soccer Executive Committee / Mr. Ahmed Salim Al-Mahri, Director of the Sports Development Dept. in DSC / Mr. Paulo Petrovas, the Football National Team’s Coach / Mr. Van Winkle, Technical Manager in the UAE Football Association / Official Persons & Coaches of age groups in governmental & private academies.
H.E. Saeed Hareb stated:
“We are proud of the remarkable success of the Tournament since its launch in 2017 under title (DSC Football Academies Championship). The event has attained great development & progress and attracted several teams from various global academies besides our local academies and clubs. This Tournament shows our attention toward juniors’ sector & academies players, as part of Dubai Government’s strategy to attract & develop sports talents. We are so pleased toward the Tournament progress. In this regard, 5000 male & female players will participate in the current edition of the Tournament, with an increase of 2000 players comparing to last year’s participation. Numbers of participating teams have jumped into 300 teams. 65 academies will participate in this edition, comparing to 41 academies participated in the last edition; top of which are teams from the academies of Barcelona, Inter Milan, Ajax Amsterdam, Juventus & Manchester City”.
He added:
“This Tournament provides unique opportunities for players to improve skills & acquire new experiences, as players will compete in 2000 matches. We are welcoming participating players alongside more than 20 thousand spectators comprising families of players, scouts & other respective bodies of academies sector. Participation in such competitions contributes to scouting & development of new talents of different age groups”.
H.E. Mohammed Bin Hazam remarked:
“We thank DSC toward its efforts to attract & develop sports talents through launching of fruitful initiatives & programs and organizing of championships, which contribute to enhance football sector. We are keen to provide all support & factors of success to this event. This Tournament conforms to the UAE Football Association’s goals & strategy. It is a convenient opportunity to scout talents who will represent the future base of clubs & national teams. The Tournament will be held under the direct supervision of the UAE Football Association, & local clubs. We are pleased toward the great success & development of the Tournament, as we have noticed the remarkable increase in the numbers of participants & followers. The participation of official academies in the event presents vital role to develop performance of promising players who are recruited in clubs. It also helped academies to form distinctive teams participating in the competitions of the first & second divisions”.
Mr. Daniel Petrovas explained:
“We are proud of hosting this eminent event. I thank DSC for trusting our abilities to host the Tournament. We confirm that we will provide well-equipped facilities to host all championships, organized by DSC. We are keen to work jointly to develop the football sector up to the top global levels. The event is held under supervision of local staff who work professionally in collaboration with our partners in Delta Co. The distinguished sports facilities in Inspiratus Co. are among the main factors of distinctive organization of the Tournament”.
Mr. Muneer Ahmed referred:
“We are pleased to collaborate with DSC & the UAE Football Association to organize this Tournament; one of the biggest football events in Dubai, aiming to boost an eminent category of football promising generations. Participants in this Tournament compete in different eight age groups; these are: U 7, U 8, U 9, U 10, U 12, U 14, U 16 & U 18. Respective bodies & scouts will attend the various competitions of the Tournament to scout promising talents of distinctive skills and sponsor them, so that they will become competent enough to represent clubs & national teams and attain future achievements”.