RIYADH — Lotto Kuwait Academy beat Suqour Alderiyah 3-2 on penalties to clinch the Copa Coca-Cola crown.
Lotto Kuwait Academy, consisting of nine youths from Dammam between the ages of 13-15, played the international youth football tournament final against Suqour Alderiyah from Riyadh at Irqah Football Field here.
The winning team not only won the highly sought after championship title, but also an opportunity to take part in the Copa Coca-Cola camp in Germany. This unique experience enables Saudi youths to join more than 1.3 million teenagers from more than 60 countries to represent their countries and compete on one field.
Mustafa Agha, head of MBC Sports and Copa Coca-Cola Ambassador, was present at the final. He said: “Being part of the Copa Coca-Cola tournament this year has been a real pleasure for me. It has been fun to watch our Saudi teens get involved in a great sport, work together and share their love of football with the world. Congratulations to well-deserved victors Lotto Kuwait Academy; good luck in Germany!”
Antoine Tayyar, Public Affairs and Communications director for Coca-Cola Middle East, said: “Coca-Cola would like to congratulate Lotto Kuwait Academy on their incredible performance. Coca-Cola has a long-term commitment to promoting the importance and benefit of regular exercise to teens in Saudi Arabia, and to offer them the chance to live their passion for football.
“We are thrilled to see the number of participants cross 11,000 this year. This competition helps to develop positive life skills and improve football talents which align with our goal to create inclusive physical activity programs throughout the region, and fostering happier and healthier young people.”
This year, Coca-Cola asked the Middle East “Which Part Will You Play?” to motivate teenagers and their supporters to celebrate footballing passion and recognize the important, complementary roles that form a successful team.
Abdullah Arrack of Coca-Cola Bottling Company Saudi Arabia said: “As a proud supporter of football on all levels, it has been amazing to see record numbers of teens sign up for this year's Copa Coca-Cola. Well done to Lotto Kuwait Academy for their success.”
Since the official introduction of the program in 1998, Copa Coca-Cola has expanded to more than 60 countries on six different continents. This is the fourth year that Copa Coca-Cola has enabled teams from around the Kingdom to play in the free tournament.
More than 80,000 schools globally have taken part in the competitions, which have encouraged over 1.3 million young players to follow an active, healthy lifestyle and embody values such as team spirit, friendship and respect.
Through strategic partnerships with FIFA, and local endorsement from the Saudi Football Federation, Copa Coca-Cola aims to proactively nurture the future generation of Saudi football heroes.
