The embassy of Switzerland, in cooperation with Egyptian football academy AIMZ, organised two days of a football tournament in Cairo on the 30th and 31st of May, in which more than 250 teenage girls participated.
The tournament took place in the evenings at the Egyptian Shooting Club in Cairo’s Dokki district, according to the embassy official statement, adding that a closing ceremony was held in the evening of the 31st of May to hand out medals and prizes for the winners from among the tournament’ 36 teams.
The ceremony took place with the participation of the Ministry of Youth and Sports, the ambassador of Switzerland to Egypt, Paul Garnier, and the UN Women Country Representative for Egypt, Blerta Aliko.
This two-day event follows on from the success of the first football tournament for teenage girls that the Swiss embassy held in Ramadan last year where 220 Egyptian girls participated.
“Promoting gender equality is a key priority for the Swiss government, and football, one of the world’s most popular sports, is an important field in which to do so. Many young girls love the sport and we are happy to offer them a platform in which to enjoy it,” said Paul Garnier, the ambassador of Switzerland to Egypt.
The year 2019 is a particularly important year for football in Egypt as the African Cup will be held in the country this summer, the ambassador added, noting, “We would like more girls to share the excitement of sport and competition.”
Throughout the two-day tournament, the participating young girls wore football t-shirts with printed Swiss and Egyptian flags, the statement asserted.
