Ten teams from the ten regions of the country will later this month battle it out in Kumasi for a chance to compete in the U-13 Milo African Championship in Kenya.
At the national launch of the grassroots football tournament at the Golden Tulip last Friday, Mr Moatez El Hout, Managing Director of Nestle Ghana, revealed that the best team to represent Ghana at the tournament would be trained by seasoned trainers and sports personalities.
The tournament, aimed at bringing out the football talents of school children, was launched in 2008 to promote values and practices relating to nutrition, health and wellness among pre-teens and young people.
This year, competing teams from Ghana, Nigeria, Cote d’Ivoire, Kenya and South Africa also get the chance to network and interact promote a united Africa through football.
Former Black Stars captain, Stephen Appiah, who is Brand Ambassador for the U-13 Milo African Championship said although he never had the opportunity to compete in the tournament when he was a young boy, he is happy beneficiaries such as Sulley Muntari, John Mensah, Laryea Kingston among others have contributed immensely to football in the country.
He vowed to encourage the participating teams and promote the tournament both in Ghana and at the continental level.
“As a professional footballer and a former captain of the Black Stars, I do have a responsibility to be a good role model and a mentor for this generation and many more generations to come”, he said at the event launch.
President of the Ghana Football Association, Kwesi Nyanatakyi lauded Nestle Ghana, for their immense contribution to sports development in the country over the years.
He said the Ghana Football Association (GFA) would always support the tournament to ensure that football talents in the urban and rural areas are unearthed.
Mr Alex Kyeremeh, Deputy Minister of Education, also commended the Nestle Ghana initiative, which he said was in line with the ministry’s plans of promoting sports and education in the country.
The national tournament kicks off in the Ashanti Region at the Paa Joe Park. The winning team then qualifies to represent Ghana at the continental level which be hosted by Kenya in May this year.
There was a draw to put participating teams into one of two groups.
The table below shows the groups and the groups they were drawn in:
GROUP A /Region
GROUP B /Region
A1: Central Region
B1: Volta Region
A2: Northern Region
B2: Brong Ahafo Region
A3: Greater Region
B3: Western Region
A4: Upper West Region
B4: Ashanti Region
A5: Eastern Region
B5: Upper East Region
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