Gazprom International Childrens Social Programme Football for Friendship unites children from over 100 countries and sets new GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS title

Gazproms Football for Friendship (F4F) Eighth Season has finished. This season, the first-ever Football for Friendship eWorld Championship united young athletes from 104 countries. Over 1 million people participated in the events of the Eighth Season.

MOSCOW, Dec. 10, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Uniting friends uniting the world slogan of Gazproms Football for Friendship. Participants of the programme are Young Players and Journalists aged 10-16. FIFA, UEFA, national football associations, and the worlds leading clubs support the programme. Roberto Carlos, World Cup and UCL Winner, is the programmes Global Ambassador.

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Young Participants held over 50 events with support of famous athletes, representatives of football academies, and journalists of the worlds leading media. They gained new knowledge about football strategy and tactics, learned new moves, and became hosts and correspondents during the events, talked about their ecological and social initiatives.

The final events of the season were held online. Over 100 football academies presented their projects to support and train young athletes at the International F4F Forum. Projects from Bolivia, India, Nigeria, and Russia were recognized as the best. FC Barcelona was voted by the Young Participants as the most socially responsible club to be awarded the Nine Values Cup.

The Granular Salamander team that untied young players from Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kazakhstan, Latvia, UAE, Russia and Turkey became the winners of the F4F eWorld Championship. It was organized on the platform of the new multiplayer simulator Football for Friendship World. Today, on World Football Day, the new game has become available for download to everyone.

In 2020, Football for Friendship obtained the GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS title for the Most users on a football/soccer video hangout.

Viktor Zubkov, Chairman of the Gazprom Board of Directors:
Since 2013, Gazprom has been implementing the Football for Friendship International Children's Social Programme. During this time, the project has brought together thousands of boys and girls of different nationalities and physical abilities from 211 countries. We can be proud of a whole generation of grown-up athletes, public figures, journalists, and aspiring young people who were given amazing opportunities for development by Football for Friendship. "

Roberto Carlos, F4F Global Ambassador:
Football for Friendship brings together truly talented and motivated kids who are in love with football, giving them the opportunity to develop, learn more about each other and find new friends. Many young football players dream of joining Football for Friendship. The universal human values promoted by the programme are really important for the children, for their future."

Frank Ludolph, UEFA Head of Football Education Services:
I was impressed by the professionalism of the organizers at all levels but also by the participants from all over the world connecting with Football for Friendship. I truly hope that the pandemic in the seasons to come will only be a bad memory. I trust that all football and sports encounters will be again face to face and not via digital means. In terms of education in general, however, we will be entering a new era of learning. Finally, I wish the organizers every success for the design of future concepts, always with a focus on sustainability.

About the programme:

The Football for Friendship International Childrens Social Programme is implemented by Gazprom since 2013. Over the previous 8 seasons, the programme has united over 15,000 participants from 211 countries and regions and over 6,000,000 supporters.

Young Players and Young Journalists are the participants of the programme boys and girls aged 12 including children with disabilities. Young Players represent different countries and cultures united in the mixed teams of the Football for Friendship World Championship. They show that nationality, gender, and physical abilities arent a barrier to becoming a team. Young Journalists cover the events of the programme in the International Childrens Press Centre.

UEFA, FIFA, football federations and the worlds leading football clubs, international charity foundations, famous athletes, politicians, and artists support Football for Friendship. The project has received multiple national and international awards in the field of social responsibility, sports, and communications, including two GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS titles.

Global Press Center
Football for Friendship
www.gazprom-football.com
global_press@footballforfriendship.com