The 19th Homeless World Cup will open in Seoul on Wednesday. FIFA President Gianni Infantino and former Korean soccer legend Cha Bum-keun also delivered congratulatory messages.
The Homeless World Cup Foundation holds the annual international tournament Homeless World Cup, which aims to support and inspire people suffering from housing instability to change their lives, and to change public perceptions and attitudes. The Homeless World Cup is a global festival of harmony and inclusion in which people in blind spots of residential areas play futsal as national players, and this year’s competition will open on the 21st in Seoul, the capital of Korea, for the first time in Asia.
The organizing committee for the Homeless World Cup hosted a draw on Tuesday. At the event, FIFA President Infantino delivered a congratulatory message through a video. “It is important to score goals and win medals, but this tournament is more meaningful than that. It is what changes people’s lives for the better using the magic of soccer,” he said. “Many people’s lives have changed since Mel Young, co-founder of the Homeless World Cup Foundation, first started the game 20 years ago. They found jobs and homes and they played bigger and bigger roles.” He continued, “This shows the tremendous power of soccer doing good. FIFA believes so. That is why FIFA is also voicing its support for the Homeless World Cup Foundation’s member states around the world.”
FIFA signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Homeless World Cup Foundation in August. Through this, it aims to support the Homeless World Cup and improve the lives of people around the world through soccer.
Former Korean soccer legend Cha Bum-kun also congratulated the opening of the “Homeless World Cup.” “The Homeless World Cup will take place in Seoul. I support FIFA as well. I hope all of the players participating in the “Homeless World Cup,” the staff helping the tournament, and the fans cheering for us will have a great time with soccer. We sincerely welcome you.” 먹튀검증
Meanwhile, the competition will be held from 21 to 28 at Hanyang University’s Seoul Campus. Sixty teams from 43 countries will compete in a hot race. Korea for the men’s event was assigned to Group A. Korea will play group preliminaries with Bulgaria, Mexico, Switzerland, South Africa, Egypt, France, Germany, and England. The first event will be held on the 21st.