Major international junior football tournament for Imatra, Vyborg and Sestroretsk 1.-2.8.

Registrations for the tournament are currently expected from interested clubs. The youngest age groups of the tournament play in Imatra, which range from under eight to under 11 years old. As many as 96 teams are expected in Ukonniemi, and the wait will not be in vain.

- We are quite sure that the series will be filled. Nowhere has the tournament filled up so quickly. Now there are 40 teams. The interest is really strong, assures the chairman of the main organizer Imatra Palloseura Emilio Urpalainen.

In addition to Imatra, four Finnish and four Russian teams will play in Viipur under 13 years old. In Sestroretsk, on the other hand, boys under the age of 12 play with 16 teams, half of which are to be gathered from Finland and half from Russia.

The Cross Border tournament is organized this year for the first time and it is the biggest event in the history of the Imatra Ball Club. 

However, the active members of the area's junior football clubs and the cities are not starting from scratch. 

- This has been done all along. Have been to Sestroretsk and Vyborg for tournaments and vice versa. Now we play under the same name for the first time. The idea is that we want to offer the possibility of internationalization to other clubs as well. The same could work in other sports, says Urpalainen.

At Imatra, it has been noticed that the high-quality Russian teams attract a lot of players from Finland as well. Recently, the juniors of HJK, Ilves and Kuusys have visited Imatra, which, according to Urpalainen, cannot be played for Imatra without tough Russian teams. 

Acting as the patrons of the tournament Andrei Arshavin, one of the brightest stars of the Russian national team of all time, as well as Finland's national team defender in recent years and became known as a TV commentator Petri Pasanen. Pasanen believes in the success of the tournament.

- What I have discussed with people seems promising, to say the least. Somehow it would seem that this tournament can't help but succeed, said Pasanen after spending a day with the tournament organizers today in Vyborg.

To produce the large-scale event, help has been received from the cities of the game locations as well as from Imatra Base Camp Oy, which sells and markets Imatra.

More information
Emilio Urpalainen, Imatran Ball Club 040-7643791
Jukka Aallikko, Imatra Base Camp Oy 0400-772007

On February 13.2.2020, 10.26 at XNUMX:XNUMX a.m., the comment was supplemented with the number of registered teams.