Action began on Sunday in The “Football for Hope” Festival 2010 (an official event of the FIFA 2010 World Cup) at the specially constructed street football stadium in Alexandra, South Africa.

Young people from disadvantaged communities around the world have gathered in Johannesburg to take part in the tourney which runs through July, 10, 2010. The competition is part of FIFA efforts to tackle social issues using football.

Thirty-two teams of boys and girls aged between 15 and 18 will face each other in a five-a-side soccer tournament The Nigerian team Nigeria will be represented by the Search and Groom team at the tourney.

The team is Captained by 15 year old Suliat Yusuf (F), an SS 2 student of Hopebay College, Alaba Oro , other players in the team are Akinwande Kehinde (F), Olatunbosun Kehinde (F), Ezeala Nkem (F), Aderemi Ebenezer (M) (Goalkeeper), Afolabi Michael (M), Egege Emmanuel (M) and Uzorka Amaechi (M) all drawn across the five implementation centres (Ajegunle, Ikeja, Agege,

Ikorodu and Ipaja/Baruwa) of Search and Groom in Lagos, Nigeria.

Olamiju Joseph is the Team Coach while Lolade Ajai, a volunteer with the organization is the young team leader and team motivator in South Africa.

President Jacob Zuma, FIFA President Sepp Blatter are amongst dignitaries expected to grace the occasion which will be televised live on South African Broadcasting Corporation (SABC).

Group A Nigeria is in Group A alongside host; Team Alexandra South Africa, Uruguay, Germany, Selección Nacional de Argentina, Grassroot Soccer ( South Africa / Zambia / Zimbabwe), USA and Football United (Australia) completes the eight-team preliminary series.

On Monday July 5, Nigeria will play two games with the first match against TEAM USA at 11:50 (local time) the game with FOOTBALL UNITED (Australia) will hold at 15:00 (local time).

TEAM ALEX (South Africa) and Uruguay are up against Nigeria at 14: 40 and 16:00 respectively on Tuesday July 6.

Final preliminary games will be rounded off against Germany (11:10) and Argentina (12:30).

Four teams from this preliminary stage will advance to the “Football for Hope” Trophy Group stage, while the bottom four teams will be in the running to win the ALEXANDRIA CUP.


http://234next.com/csp/cms/sites/Next/Sport/5589243-147/football_for_hope_festival_begins_in.csp

Nigeria (represented by Search and Groom -youth for development centre) came from behind to secure maximum points on the opening day of the “Football for Hope” Festival 2010 as they defeated their opponents Grassroots soccer (Zimbabwe, Zambia & South Africa) in Group A by 2-1.

Trailing one-nil and with less than three minutes to play, Emmanuel Egege came from the bench to level score after a solo run beating four players on the way.

The capacity crowd at the specially constructed street soccer stadium with artificial turf went wild with excitement after Kehinde Akinwande hit the roof of the net with a minute to spare to end score at 2 - 1.

Goalkeeper Ebenezer Aderemi had started the build up from the rear and Egege Emmanuel shrugged off two opponents, with only the goalkeeper to beat, he chose to pass on the ball to Kehinde Akinwande and she hit a rising shot for a spectacular goal.

With this result, Nigeria made three points from the game and another one point for fair play on the pitch.

Meanwhile, action resumes today, with Nigeria playing two games. The first match is against Team USA at 11:50 (local time) the game with Football United (Australia) will hold at 15:00 (local time).


http://234next.com/csp/cms/sites/Next/Sport/5589706-147/nigerias_team_wins_in_south_africa.csp

Amaka what are you doing in sports?

dominique:

Amaka what are you doing in sports?

I'm in Johannesburg for the WC na! 

Thirty-two soccer teams from across the world are battling it out in South Africa, but this time, the young boys and girls competing are not just in it for the trophy.

Each team is fighting for a cause, hoping to make an impact on the world with more than just their soccer skills.

The 32 mixed teams of boys and girls between the ages of 15 and 18 represent teams that tackle issues such as Aids, gang violence, corruption, discrimination and drugs.

The teams are part of the Football for Hope Festival that kicked off in Alexandra on Sunday.

Like the opening ceremony of the 2010 FIFA World Cup, the Football for Hope tournament started with celebrations, dance and songs, with a number dignitaries present.

While South African artists Danny K, Kabelo and JR entertained the jubilant crowd, President Jacob Zuma and FIFA President Sepp Blatter had words of wisdom for the participating teams.

Zuma said it was an honour to host the Football for Hope Festival in South Africa and more especially in Alexandra - a place of happiness.

He described the festival as an "important development in the family of soccer".

"Soccer is loved by the majority of the world. What the leaders of soccer have decided is that it must now act more because football is more than just football, it goes beyond the game," he said.

There are important life lessons - such as being happy in victory and accepting defeat with a smile - that could be learnt through the game of soccer, the president added.

"I wish I was young once again so I could play soccer," he joked.

The aim of Football for Hope Festival was to connect people and to bring people together from all over the world, Blatter said.

The festival brought together the "characters and the essence of the game to disseminate a message of hope to the world hope through football", he said.

He described soccer as a school of life saying the game helped educate not just on the field.

"Football is a game based on discipline and respect. It's a game in which you compete with a good spirit and with fair play," Blatter added.

He encouraged the participants to display these qualities during their matches.

The first match of the tournament saw Uruguay, a team that fights for children's rights and social inclusion, play against hosts, Team Alexandra - a team made up of young volunteer coaches from Play Soccer South Africa.

Apart from the football, the teams competing in the tournament will also participate in workshops where they are expected to learn from each other. The festival also includes a programme of cultural celebrations. - BuaNews

tnx for the info

Just come back from Alexandra watching the FFH tournament.

Our young boys are doing really well o!!

Please come and support our team if you are in Joburg.

Lotsof South Americans were there this afternoon, waving flags and cheering their teams on. Even Chile had lots of support.

I KNOW THERE ARE LOTS OF NAIJA PEOPLE IN JOHANNESBURG. COME SUPPORT OUR YOUNG BOYS AND GIRLS ABEG!!