Brazilian footballer Neymar Jr. PHOTO: REUTERS
Brazil skipper Neymar Jr is giving thousands of young football players around the world a chance to step up their game by staging a unique knockout tournament starting this year.
The professional footballer, who plays for Spanish club FC Barcelona and the Brazil national team as a forward, has invited players between the ages of 16 to 25 from all over the world to team up for his five-a-side tournament, ‘Neymar Jr’s Five’.
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“It’s a fun, fast and technical game,” Neymar said in a statement published on the tournament’s official website.
The skipper grew up playing the same kind of fast-paced five-a-side football in his neighbourhood, “It’s the kind of football I’ve always loved to play and this time we play it with a special twist to it: the five-player teams lose one player each time they concede a goal until there are no players left, or the 10-minute game ends. This will be even more exciting,” he added.
The tournament in Pakistan starts next month from March 12 onwards in Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad with the national finals slated to take place in Islamabad on March 27.
The national champion from Pakistan will then advance to the finals in July in Praia Grande, where Neymar Jr grew up, started his professional career and lately founded “Instituto Projeto Neymar Jr”.
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“I always dreamed of putting on my own signature tournament and invite the best teams over to my hometown. This finally becomes a reality so I’m really looking forward to see what these players can do – and have a great time doing it.”
The world final will be held in July at the Instituto Projeto Neymar Jr in the state of Sao Paulo, Brazil. Teams of 5 to 7 players can sign up for the tournament via www.neymarjrsfive.com.
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