On Thursday, August 21st, Team Brazil won their final match in the 2014 Mundialito Football Tournament and earned the coveted first place championship cup. Held at the Honorable Louis Sylvester Arena and hosted by the San Pedro Sports Committee, the tournament saw six teams of children between the ages of 5 to 14 competing in a series of matches over the past three months. The purpose of the tournament was to promote a healthy recreational activity for children during the summer break. Participating teams had names of international football selections including Mexico, Brazil, Spain, Germany, Argentina and Italy.
Thursday nights’ matches were for the finals. The first game of the night was to determine third place in the championship, and took place between Spain and Germany. It was a grueling match that saw Spain scoring a tie breaking goal to secure themselves the win and the third place with a 4-3 score. Facing off for the championship were Brazil and Argentina. The young athletes played like veteran footballers, their offensive and defensive tactics in high gear. In the end. It was Brazil who took the win 2-1, and the honor of being named Mundialito Champions. Argentina had to settle for a still prestigious second place.
Once the games were over, it was time for the award ceremony. Team members each received a trophy and individual medals. Individual awards were also issued. Taking the Best midfielder award was Michael Rodriguez from Germany. The Best Defender award went to Marvin Caliz from Argentina, while the Best Goal Keeper award went to Brazil’s Alan Cowo. Argentina’s Isaias Garcia took the award for most goals in the regular season, while Jahid Eric Kameni Flowers from Brazil took both the Most Valuable Player and Best Striker award. An award was also given to the best coach of the tournament who was Brazil’s Angie Olivarez. After the award ceremony the children enjoyed snacks and drinks.
The tournament organizers would like to thank the San Pedro Town Council, Gaby’s Construction, Hector “Tito” Alamilla, Roberto Canul, Gary Grief, Wilbert Magana, football fans, parents, coaches and all the young football players for making the tournament a success.