Youngsters to show off skills at Volkswagen’s junior soccer tournament
Now in its eighth year, the Volkswagen Junior Masters Tournament is back for another round at the beginning of December.
“Sport has the power to create a positive impact in the lives of the youth and that is why investment in sport and youth development is an important pillar of Volkswagen’s CSI initiatives, especially the Junior Masters Tournament” said Thomas Schaefer, Chairman and Managing Director: Volkswagen Group South Africa.
This annual tournament which will take place at the University of Witwatersrand, Johannesburg from 8 to 9 December 2017, will see 16 teams, sponsored by Volkswagen Dealerships from around the country, contesting the championship.
Each team consists of nine U/12 boys and the tournament will be run as a knock-out tournament with 16 teams split into four competing groups. Within each group, the four teams will play against each other with the top two teams progressing to the next stage. The same playing format applies until there is a winning team.
The winning team will be jetting off to the Volkswagen Junior World Masters tournament in June next year to represent South Africa, among countries like Argentina, Brazil, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, South Korea, Spain and the USA.
“There is a lot to play for, as not only with the winning team be representing South Africa at the international tournament, but the entire trip to Germany will be sponsored by Volkswagen South Africa. Next year will be the fifth time that Volkswagen South Africa is represented at this international soccer tournament,” added Schaefer.
The Volkswagen Junior World Masters started in Germany, the home of Volkswagen, in 1999 and has progressed to be one of the biggest youth football competitions in the world, and is currently held in more than 20 countries.
The regional formats of the tournament vary from country to country, with some countries’ tournaments consisting of a one day event with up to 400 teams participating in a whole series of qualifying tournaments leading up to the grand finale.
The general match and tournament rules follow the international regulations stipulated by FIFA, and the specific sanctioned rules of the tournament host country. The national champion of a country can qualify for the international Volkswagen Junior World Masters which takes place every second year with the next one scheduled for June 2018.
Tournament dates: 8 – 9 December 2017
(8 Dec – Fixtures Day 1)
(9 Dec – Fixtures Day 2 and Closing Ceremony)
Venue: WITS University, Johannesburg
Time: 09:00 – 16:00
Tournament format: Knock-out playing format (10 minutes per side, per game)
Via: Volkswagen South Africa