Youth football competition played on multiple surfaces at Media One Tower
On May 31, the pressure was on to win the title at the grand finale of LVL UP. Hosted by Nike, this unique small-sided game tournament gave young amateur footballers the chance to own the game anytime, anywhere.
Taking place in Dubai’s Media One Tower across three levels of the building, this ultimate small-sided competition challenged eight teams to battle it out in increasingly intense conditions. In order to become champions, footballers had to prove themselves and showcase their skills on three diverse surfaces: Court, Turf and Street. The tournament focused specifically on the small-sided game — an important facet of the player’s total skill set.
“Playing five-a-side as a kid was a massive part of my development. It improved my control, speed, awareness and vision so much. We still play versions of it in training.“ — Wayne Rooney
The competition started with a tremendous amount of energy and excitement. All teams arrived ready to fight for the title with utmost focus and determination. The competition was fearless and every team demonstrated their eagerness to beat their opponent putting their best skills on each one of the courts they could own.
For the sky high Finale, team Ahdaaf Sports Club and Bayern Neverlosin battled ruthlessly but only the best can win LVL UP: Ahdaaf Sports Club. “This is a dream come true, we still can’t believe that we actually won the tournament!”
Soaring summer temperatures and a lack of available space, make it impossible for Dubai’s soccer mad teens to play their game for a large part of the year. Little wonder then the tournament attracted so many football fans across the region, reaching 1.7 million through social media interactions and 50 million viewers through TV coverage with an additional 3 million reach from Nike-owned social channels.
Tristan Fitzgerald, Creative Director at JWT Dubai on the Nike account, said “This tournament is totally Dubai – only here does it make sense to bring street football to a tower.”
LVL UP was inspired by the new Nike Football FC247 collection, a range of performance footwear geared for the variety of playing surfaces, from hard-court to turf. Each footwear silhouette features innovations specific to the style of play reflective of the respective surface.
For more information on the FC247 Collection, visit http://nikeinc.com/news/nike-football-fc247
Samer Marzouq
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