The countdown has started
When former “Bundesliga” and FIFA referee Bernd Heynemann blows the starting whistle at Luxol Sports Ground in Malta on Thursday, 9th February at 10.30am, he will herald the start of the Malta Soccer Trophy 40+, the international soccer tournament for players over 40 years of age.
In the first match, the 40+ team of German VfR Aalen will play against BSC Old Boys Basel from Switzerland. Supported by the Malta Tourism Authority, this football tournament has evoked considerable interest amongst European 40+ teams and promises to grow into an annual sporting event on an international scale.
The tournament finals will be held on Saturday, February 11th. Tourism Minister Edward Zammit Lewis, will present the trophy to the winning team.
At this point in time it is not known which of the teams will move into the final games. It is certain however, that the Maltese 40+ selection is a hot contender to reach the final.
Malta’s “national team” was set up by Masters Football Malta and consists of some well-known, former professionals. Mario Meli, President of Masters Football Malta, recruited two ex-professionals, namely Brian Said and Gilbert Agius, whose reputation is not only excellent in Malta. In addition to these former heroes of Maltese football other high-caliber players will surely join the Maltese team and turn it into a frontrunner. This can be considered as an exceptional situation for the Maltese team who is usually only an outsider at European and international tournaments.
The German teams are also present with team members who “know what they are doing”. With regards to the SG Hoechst Classique team - the three-time German 40+ runner-up - team captain Andreas Grabitsch and striker Sven Müller won very special awards within the framework of the German 40+ Championships in 2009 and 2012. In 2009, Grabitsch was elected as the best player by the 10 coaches of the tournament and Müller won the title “goal-getter cannon” in 2012. VfB Giessen’s Claus Peter Zick, Björn Pistauer (both SG Eintracht Frankfurt), Thomas Vollmer (TSV 1860 München) and Claudius Weber (FSV Mainz 05) are players who are experienced with Germany’s premier league.
TSV Reinbek was Hamburg’s