Sports News of Thursday, 12 May 2022
Source: www.ghanaweb.live
2022-05-12Kaka and Casillas to visit Ghana with World Cup trophy
Spain legend, Iker Casillas and Brazil legend, Kaka
Ghana qualify for FIFA World Cup
2022 FIFA World Cup to kick start on November 21
Ghana drawn in Group H of FIFA World Cup
Brazil legend, Kaka and Spain legend, Iker Casillas are set to visit Ghana along with the gold-plated FIFA World Cup trophy.
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The main purpose of the trophy tour is to raise awareness in the countries that will participate in the tournament. Therefore, all the 32 qualified countries for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar will be visited.
The Trophy Tour sponsored by Coca-Cola is also a move by FIFA to visit countries of all the 211 member associations before 2030.
Kaká, one time World Cup winner who has been selected to join the tour said it's of great honour to be part of the journey.
“It is an incredible honour to be part of the first stop of the FIFA World Cup Trophy Tour by Coca-Cola. My first FIFA World Cup as a player was when I was just 20 years old, and it is still fresh in my mind – for me, it was a dream come true,” he said as quoted by fifa.com.
Iker Casillas who lifted the trophy back in 2010, South Africa, as captain of Spain said it was the highlight of his career.
“It was the highlight of my career when I lifted this very trophy as captain of Spain in 2010. And it is exciting that someone will have that feeling in Qatar later this year. It fills me with great pride to join all of you today, as we kick off the journey of the FIFA World Cup Trophy, bringing it to the fans across the globe.”
Romy Gai, FIFA’s Chief Business Officer, explained the significance of taking the trophy along for the tour.
“The FIFA World Cup Trophy is one of the greatest symbols in sport,” he said as quoted by fifa.com.
“Bringing it on tour gives us a unique opportunity to shine a spotlight on the fantastic communities around the world who love the beautiful game. The trophy tour – which will end back in Qatar, our amazing hosts – highlights our commitment to making football truly global as we realise the dreams of our fans and bring the joy and excitement of the FIFA World Cup to their doorsteps, together with our long-standing partner Coca-Cola,” he added.
The original trophy will be unveiled in Dubai, at the Coca-Cola Arena on May 12, 2022, before the journey to 51 countries in 2022 begins.
The Black Stars qualified for the inter-continental showpieces after eliminating Nigeria in the play-offs.
Ghana have been drawn in Group H World Cup alongside Portugal, Uruguay, and South Korea.
The 2022 FIFA World Cup tournament is scheduled to kick start from November 21 to December 18.
