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Sports Editor
Charity football competition will have women’s teams for first time
Neymar Jr’s Five, a charity 5-a-side-football event, is returning worldwide this year, with the qualifiers coming to Glasgow on Wednesday 7 (6.30pm) and Sunday 11 (1pm) of March. The tournament, created by Paris Saint-Germain and Brazil superstar Neymar Jr, has a fresh and original concept. Each team has five players and every time they concede they lose a player until they are out of players – extra time will be played if needed.
This year the organisers of the event are keen to increase inclusivity. In previous iterations of the tournament only men’s and mixed gender team were able to take part, however, this year marks the introduction of all-women’s teams.
The qualifiers in Glasgow, will take place at the Townhead Powerleague on Kennedy Street and winning team from Glasgow will enter a national final with the winners of the other UK regional qualifiers. The national final winners will then be flown to Brazil to take part in the final tournament.
The tournament is available to anyone between 16-25, so is perfect for students, however, each squad of seven can have two players over 25.
The event is in aid of Neymar Jr’s charity Instituto Projeto Neymar Jr, a private, non-profit association dedicated to social causes, set up by Neymar Jr and his family. The Institute is an 8,400 square-metre education and sporting complex catering for 2,470 underprivileged children aged 7-14 and their families.
The road to the Neymar Jr’s Five World Final has already begun with players from more than 60 countries and six continents set to battle it out for global glory. Last year, over 100,000 players from 53 countries took part in the competition and this year the countries participating has increased meaning even more teams will line up with the chance to be crowned champions.
Speaking of the event, Neymar Jr said: “What makes me really excited is that each edition brings more players from more countries so I’m glad to know that everyone wants to participate, and I feel happy to be part of it, this is what excites me the most.”
