Courtesy: Channel News Asia


S'pore team to participate in Red Bull Tri-Nations Futsal Cup

by Patwant Singh

08 October 2011

SINGAPORE: Brunei will be hosting the first Southeast Asian Red Bull Tri-Nations Futsal Cup on Sunday, and a team from Singapore will be participating.

The Singapore team are the winners in the recent North West Futsal Challenge 2011, where some 700 youths participated. Now, they are headed to Brunei, where they will take on the host and another team from Malaysia. At stake in Brunei is S$4,500 in prize money, a trophy and medals.

Brunei is also using the event to kick-off festivities, after FIFA recently lifted its ban on the country's football association.

FIFA had slapped the Football Association of Brunei Darussalam (BAFA) with a global ban after government interference in its affairs, which started with a decision by the Brunei authorities to dissolve the BAFA and to replace it with a new association in December 2008.

Wong Chin Toon, managing director of Green City Concept, the organiser of the tournament, said: "It is an initiative by his Royal Highness Prince Sufri Bolkiah, the brother of His Majesty Sultan. He is (also the) Honorary President of the National Football Association of Brunei Darussalam. They just got back into the (football) scene after being absent for two years.

"We (Green City Concept) were organising the first local futsal tournament and it so happened that they wanted to co-organise it with us. (That was) their first local tournament and this Tri-Nations coming up is the first-ever international tournament under this new association."

The organisers are making the event an annual affair and are also increasing the number of countries participating. Beyond that, they are looking at grooming talent in the sport and giving them an opportunity to compete at the regional level.




Posted by Luca Ranocchiari --> luca.ranocchiari@futsalplanet.com