BAKU, Azerbaijan, May 2. The opening ceremony of the International Mini-Football Tournament dedicated to the 100th anniversary of National Leader Heydar Aliyev was held on May 1 with the organization of the Azerbaijan Mini-Football Federation (AMF) and the support of the Ministry of Youth and Sports.
The event was attended by heads of sports federations, ambassadors of Türkiye, the Czech Republic and diplomats of other countries in Azerbaijan and began with the performance of the National Anthem of Azerbaijan.
Then a video was shown about the attention and care the National Leader Heydar Aliyev showed towards sports.
Speaking at the event, Minister of Youth and Sports Farid Gayibov informed about the sports policy and development of sports implemented in Azerbaijan, the successful results achieved by its athletes at international sports competitions, and the increase in the number of sports competitions held by the country every year.
Honorary President of the AMF and the Zira Football Club Orkhan Mammadov noted that the foundations of sports policy in Azerbaijan were laid by National Leader Heydar Aliyev, and as a result of the great attention and care shown by the President of Azerbaijan Ilham Aliyev to the development of sports and our athletes, new victories were won at international competitions.
Mammadov also shared his thoughts on the development of mini-football in our country and the goals of the International Mini-Football Tournament, expressed his confidence that the tournament will be held in a friendly atmosphere and will be remembered, and also wished success to the teams that will take part in the competition.
In turn, Filip Juda, President of the World Minifootball Federation (WMF), highlighted that after Azerbaijan became the European champion in mini-football, interest in this sport has increased even more in the country, and such prestigious international tournaments are important in the promotion of this sport.
Azerbaijan is known in the world as a sports country, and the attention paid to the development of sports at the state level has been repeatedly recognized by international sports organizations and federations.
After the performances, the opening ceremony continued with an artistic program. At the end, the teams of 10 countries competing in the tournament were invited to the stage.
On the first day of the tournament in Group A, the Serbian national team won against Georgia with a minimum score - of 1:0. The only goal scored in the match Ukraine-Kazakhstan, which took place in Group B, brought victory to the Kazakhstanis.
At the end of the day, the national teams of Azerbaijan and the Czech Republic met. The game ended in a draw. France and South Africa met in Group B, and the game ended with a score of 11:0.
During the tournament in the group stage, the Azerbaijani national team will meet with the national teams of Italy, Georgia, and Serbia.
The playoffs and semifinal games of the tournament will take place on May 5, and the final game will take place on May 6 at 20:30.
Schedule of the game with the participation of the Azerbaijani national team:
Azerbaijan-Italy (20:30) on May 2, 2023
Azerbaijan-Georgia (20:30) on May 3, 2023
Azerbaijan-Serbia (19:00) on May 4, 2023
