Bengaluru, October 9th: The two-day ‘Kick For A Cause With SUFC’ football tournament saw The Freedom Project emerge as Champions in both the U-13 and U-15 categories. In the tournament, which was conducted at SUFC’s state-of-the-art, FIFA-standard facility in Ulsoor, The Freedom Project ‘B’ won the U-13 category, beating their counterparts from The Freedom Project ‘A’ 2-0, while in the finals of the U-15 category, The Freedom Project ‘A’ emerged victorious beating Ball For All 6-0. Enabling Leadership ‘A’ and Shining Stars FC won the Fair Play award in the U-13 and U-15 categories respectively.

Rasikul Ansari (Enabling Leadership ‘A’), Eshaan Fahad (Swanthana Trust), Sanjeev (The Freedom Project ‘A’), Sujith (The Freedom Project ‘A’), and Guruprasad P. (SoCare India) were adjudged as the emerging players in the U-13 category, while in the U-15 category, Moses (Reaching Hand), Bishwajit Sarkar (Enabling Leadership), Arun Kumar R. (Ball For All), Tarun (The Freedom Project ‘A’), and Kevin D. (The Freedom Project ‘A’) were selected as the emerging players.

The winners and runners-up in each category received a trophy and medals, and exceptional players received goodies from PUMA India and a scholarship from South United Football Academy. All the participants in the tournaments were awarded participation certificates, and the winners even received vouchers from Salt World. ‘Kick For A Cause With SUFC’ is a commitment that extends to include community programmes and developmental initiatives within and beyond the Club’s network.

Speaking on the tournament, Mr. Terence Phelan, Sporting Director of SUSF, said, “Our staff put all their hard work into making this tournament a wonderful experience for these kids from diverse backgrounds, giving them an exciting, fun-filled weekend. The confidence level of the kids was fantastic, and it was great to see them being motivated by their coaches and team members. I could see some very talented players out there who, if nurtured and developed in the right way, can go places in the long run. This first edition of‘Kick For A Cause With SUFC’is only the start, and we want to take this tournament pan-India to help more such kids get closer to achieving their footballing dreams”.

The first edition of ‘Kick For A Cause With SUFC’ saw 153 kids from seven city-based Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs). 75 kids in the U-13 category and 78 kids in the U-15 category participated in the Bengaluru-based Super Division Club’s initiative of 'Football For Change’. SUFC aims to provide a platform for underprivileged kids to showcase their talent and thereafter help them build a career in the sport, and this tournament was a perfect start for the initiative. The tournament, which did not have any gender barrier, saw 26 girls, 12 in the U-13 category and 14 in the U-15 category, going head-to-head with the boys.

Terence Phelan, Sporting Director, SUSF, Sachin Badadhe, Head Coach & Head of Youth Development, SUFC, and Susmith Varkey, Manager – Team Sports Sales, PUMA India, gave away the prizes to all the winners and participants.

Some of the most active Bengaluru NGOs battled for top honours as seven different NGOs, viz The Freedom Project, Enabling Leadership, SoCare Foundation, Swanthana Trust, Reaching Hand, Ball For All, and Shining Stars FC actively participated in the two-day competition. The U-13 category was a 7-a-side tournament with two 15-minute halves, and the U-15 category was a 9-a-side tournament with two halves of 20 minutes each. The matches were played in a round-robin and knockout format, with the teams divided into two groups in each category.

The tournament had garnered support from several leading brands. Salt World was the Associate Partner who sponsored the competition and provided vouchers to the winners of the tournament. As Kit Partner, sports brand PUMA India provided kits and goodies to outstanding players. The Nutrition Partner, Grill N Chill, handled the FnB arrangements for all the participants, and the Medical Partner, Manipal Hospitals, delivered medical assistance throughout the tournament.