Red Bull Neymar Jr’s Five crowns 2022 Kuwait champions
KUWAIT: Red Bull Neymar Jr’s Five came to a close, with team Jayenkom taking the tournament crown. This year, and for the first time, country champions from 2021 and 2022 will land in Qatar for the World Final that will see Neymar Jr in attendance, and on the pitch. Professional footballer and tournament namesake Neymar Jr has even referred to it as the Super Finals. It is certain to be the biggest Red Bull Neymar Jr’s Five World Final yet.
The Red Bull Neymar Jr’s Five World Final has also set its date and will be held in Doha, Qatar on the 24th of May 2022. The tournament qualifiers round spanned three days, from April 11 to 13, and featured 115 teams from around the country vying for a spot in the Kuwait National Finals. In the end, 12 teams qualified for the National Final, held at Marina Beach on April 20, 2022.
The Kuwait Country Finals began with Kuwaiti star footballer Aziz Mashaan taking up hosting duties and pre-game festivities. He walked the teams through his warmup routine, and kept everyone limber before the start of the first match. He reminded attendees of the importance of keeping muscles healthy and strong before beginning matches. Mashaan is the first Kuwaiti footballer to play for a European team.
Only two teams remained, and they were Jayenkom, and Ajaj. Last year, Jayenkom were defeated in the Semi-finals when they lost 2-0 to Al-Najjar. This was their time to make all the way to the last match of the tournament. And they were determined to do so.
The National Final turned into a magnificent display of raw and expertly executed defense. Both Jayenkom and Ajaj gave everything to putting a goal through the back of the net, and each time, came up short. No matter what they tried, neither team could break through the defensive wall to score the first goal. The match ended in a draw, and they had to go into overtime.
As per the official rulebook, Red Bull Neymar Jr’s Five matches that conclude with a draw go into a head-to-head mode, where one player from each team is chosen to represent. The first to score wins the match. It was here where team Jayenkom was able to score on Ajaj and win by the slimmest margin of 10. Team Jayenkom has proven to be a dominant force in the long running five-a-side series. This championship win marks the second time that Team Jayenkom has been crowned the best amateur 5-on-5 team in the country.
The 2022 World Finals will be completely different from any year before it. Neymar Jr has chosen to bring back the 2021 country winners from around the world to join in the competition this year. This means that The Juniors will be going to Qatar for the Super Finals as well. They won the 2021 tournament by defeating rival Al-Najjar 5-0 to finish strong.