| Founded | 1975 |
|---|---|
| Region | International |
| Number of teams | 1700 teams |
| Website | www |
The Gothia Cup (Swedish pronunciation: [ɡuːtɪa ˈkɵpː]) is an international youth association football tournament organized by professional football club BK Häcken, which has been held annually since 1975 in Gothenburg, Sweden. Considered the biggest tournament in the world in terms of participating teams, competing youth teams throughout the world enter the competition. The Gothia Cup is also Sweden's largest annual event. The Jamie Johnson (TV series) in Series 4 displays Phoenix FC, a grassroots football club competing in the Gothia Cup.
Overview
Spanning one week the Gothia Cup is a youth association football tournament held annually in Gothenburg, Sweden, open for both boys and girls of ages 11 to 18. In terms of participants, it is the world's second largest youth football tournament with only the Norway Cup being bigger. In 2017, 1730 teams from 82 nations participated.
The Gothia Cup started in 1975 with 275 participating teams. In July each year, the event becomes the dominant event in Gothenburg, with (as of 2017) 4,349 games played on 110 fields, and 300,000 visitors to the center in Heden. According to the tourist authorities of Gothenburg, the 2006 Gothia Cup generated 282 million Swedish krona in tourist income for Gothenburg city and 118 million krona in tax income for Sweden.
Teams compete from across the world; such as from Brazil, United Arab Emirates, Bangladesh and the Czech Republic.
In 2020, for the first time since the tournament's inaugural season, the tournament was not held, due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Sweden.
Gothia Cup China
The concept of Gothia Cup was exported to China in the 2010s. In 2016, the Gothia Cup China, a sister tournament to the Gothia Cup, was established in Shenyang, China. The inaugural Gothia Cup China took place from 13 to 19 August 2016 at the newly built Gothia Cup Football Park. The tournament featured 250 participating teams from 20 nations, although a reliable citation is needed to support this information.
Famous participants
This list includes notable players who played in Gothia Cup in their youth and later had been playing for their national teams.
Emmanuel Adebayor (with Les Eperviers)
Xabi Alonso (with Antiguoko)
Joel Asoro (won with IF Brommapojkarna 2010)
Júlio Baptista (with Pequeninos do Jockey)
Yassine Bounou (with Wydad AC)
Gordon Durie (with Hill of Beath Swifts)
Marco Etcheverry (with AD Tahuichi)- Tobias Hysén
- Zlatan Ibrahimović
Odilon Kossounou (with ASEC Mimosas)- Dejan Kulusevski (won with IF Brommapojkarna 2010)
- Kim Källström won with BK Häcken 1997 (with Partille IF 1996)
Egy Maulana Vikri (with ASIOP Apacinti)
Fabián Orellana (with CSD Colo Colo)
Andrea Pirlo (won with US Voluntas)- Erwin Sánchez (with AD Tahuichi)
Slobodan Savić (with Jugović Kać)
Alan Shearer (with Wellington Juniors)
Gylfi Sigurdsson (with Fimleikafelag Hafnarfjarðar F.H.)- Bruno Viana (with Cruzeiro Esporte Clube)
- Cristian Zaccardo (with FC Spilamberto)
- Zé Roberto (with Pequeninos do Jockey)
Fiete Arp (with KFV Segeberg)- Morten Behrens (won with KFV Segeberg 2008)
- Thore Jacobsen (won with KFV Segeberg 2008)
See also
References
- "World's largest youth soccer cup gets underway in Gothenburg". Sveriges Radio. SR International – Radio Sweden. 14 July 2015. Archived from the original on 31 July 2015. Retrieved 11 September 2015.
- ^ "Gothia Cup 2018". Goteborg.com. Archived from the original on 2017-09-06. Retrieved 2017-09-06.
- "Gothia Cup - Gothia Cup on export to China". 26 September 2015. Archived from the original on 26 September 2015.
- "Gothia Cup China » 2019, Qingdao". Archived from the original on 2016-08-15. Retrieved 2016-08-15.
- "Visste du att… - Gothia Cup". Gothiacup.se. Archived from the original on 2013-08-23. Retrieved 2016-09-06.
- "All Star Team - Gothia Cup". Gothiacup.se. Archived from the original on 2013-08-19. Retrieved 2016-09-06.
- "Gothia Cup har växt ur sin kostym | GT". Expressen.se. 2012-07-16. Archived from the original on 2016-09-13. Retrieved 2016-09-06.
- "Stjärnorna som spelat Gothia cup - Bilder - www.gp.se". Archived from the original on 2012-06-05. Retrieved 2013-05-28.
- Bhattacharjee, Neeladri (29 July 2023). "Minerva Academy treading path of Pirlo, Shearer and Ibrahimovic with Gothia Cup win". sportstar.thehindu.com. Chennai: Sportstar – The Hindu News. Archived from the original on 29 July 2023. Retrieved 31 July 2023.
Further reading
- Azad, Divya (17 July 2023). "Minerva Academy's winning start in Youth World Cup". worldwisdomnews.com. Chandigarh: World Wisdom News. Archived from the original on 19 July 2023. Retrieved 18 July 2023.
- "Minerva Academy becomes first-ever Indian club to win Gothia Cup 2023". thebridge.com. Chandigarh: The Bridge. 23 July 2023. Archived from the original on 23 July 2023. Retrieved 23 July 2023.
- Gupta, Shalini (22 July 2023). "Minerva Academy become first Indian team to win Gothia Cup". khelnow.com. Khel Now News. Archived from the original on 23 July 2023. Retrieved 23 July 2023.
- "Minerva Academy FC made history as the first-ever Indian team to win Gothia Cup". gothiacup.se. Gothenburg. 22 July 2023. Archived from the original on 22 July 2023. Retrieved 23 July 2023.
- Madhavan, Rahul (22 July 2023). "Indian football fans show overwhelming support as Minerva Academy youngsters make history on global stage". Sportskeeda.com. Archived from the original on 23 July 2023. Retrieved 23 July 2023.
- Gupta, Shalini (23 July 2023). "Minerva Academy FC enters history books as first Indian side to lift Gothia Cup". hindustantimes.com. Chandigarh: The Hindustan Times. Archived from the original on 23 July 2023. Retrieved 23 July 2023.
