The fourth edition of the Fidelis Ilechukwu U13 Football Championship, scheduled to begin on November 19 at the Abete Playing Ground in Iwaya, Yaba-Lagos, has all the necessary logistics in place for successful hosting.
The grassroots football tourney is a pet project of Plateau United Technical Adviser Fidelis Ilechukwu. It aims to identify young, gifted players and provide them with a stage on which to demonstrate their abilities.
Speaking from his base in Jos, Ilechukwu, a passionate advocate of grassroots football, said: “It’s my own little way of giving back to football.
“The tourney is to allow football talents to be discovered by as many people as possible which is the best way to attract new players to football and give them access to the game in their community.”
Tournament Coordinator Jolayemi Kunle said: “The U13 football championship is open to all grassroots teams in Lagos. In this year’s edition, we have decided to use weight as a means of curbing age cheat.
”The weight requirement is 40kg for players and 43kg for goalkeepers. All teams must present a total of 16 players and two shot-stoppers, to make 18.
“Entries will be based on a first come, first served is the target is 16 teams, but it’s not an automatic qualification for teams as we’ll doing our own screening too.”
BamiseGod was the winner of the last edition after they defeated 36 Lion Iyawa on penalties.
