La Liga Academy book du FC UAE semis berth
DUBAI: This weekend witnessed the final day of group stages in Dubai for the du Football Champions ( du FC) nationwide tournament, in partnership with Laliga, and home of the official UAE Girls Challenge, UAE Schools and Streets Cup.
In the UAE Girls Challenge, which was closely followed by the Laliga scouts, Dwight School and Abu Dhabi International Private School – AIS fought it out in a draw with a final score of 1-1.
Intent on taking home the trophy for the second consecutive year, Laliga Academy powered through their 3 matches scoring a total of 35 goals and conceding zero goals, qualifying them to go straight into the du Football Champions UAE semi-finals, along with Gems Winchester from Group B and LLFP and Philadelphia Private school from the Group A in the tournament.
The girls’ performances impressed Laliga scouts who were on the lookout to select top talents to join the by-invitation-only du Laliga High Performance Centre, an exclusive professional development center delivering Laligastandard athletes and providing a pathway to professional football careers.
The Centre was opened to girls a few years, to provide female top talent with the same development opportunities as boys.
The weekend saw an outpour of parents and friends attending the tournament and supporting their teams.
Commenting on their being out at du Football Champions, they said: “A lot of clubs and schools encourage girls in sports and football, but very few put into action.
“Such a tournament is so important to giving the girls the chance to live and experience real competition on the ground, and learn the importance of teamwork, collaboration football strategy on the ground.
“We are very happy that our girls are taking part in the du Football Champions and will encourage them to take part every year.”
The UAE Girls Challenge has been at the heart of du Football Champions since its inception 5 years ago with a mission to support girls football development in the UAE.
The competition has allowed thousands of girls from across the nation and from various nationalities to play a high level of competitive football, while providing them the opportunity to be discovered and join the du Laliga High Performance Centre.