The Union of European Football Associations (UEFA) under its UEFA ASSIST program this week invites Vanuatu Men’s U16 to Latvia in Northern Europe to take part in the UEFA Assist tournament.
Chris Milnes who is part of the team managing UEFA Assist said it is a solidarity programme that aims to develop football within UEFA’s sister confederations and their members.
“The programme addresses the needs of national associations and confederations outside Europe has one of the main pillars is to focus on developing youth football”, he said.
The U18 tournament, which took place in late August, featured New Caledonia, Tahiti, Papua New Guinea and Vanuatu from the Oceania Football Confederation (OFC) together with Estonia from UEFA and eventual winners India from the Asian Football Confederation (AFC).
The event was the first of its kind held in Oceania run by European football’s governing body, which aims to support national associations and confederations across the globe.
The General Secretary of the Vanuatu Football Federation, Albert Manaroto, said that the initiative launched by UEFA ASSIST was a great opportunity for coaches and players to exchange ideas, while the feedback from the tournament in August was overwhelmingly positive.
“In the majority of cases in the Oceania region, official tournaments or qualifiers are the only opportunity for our youth teams to experience international competition. This amounts to roughly three games per category every two years,” he said.
“In terms of football development this isn’t really enough if we are aiming to reach the highest levels and so the introduction of this event is important for regional development,” Manaroto concluded
“UEFA Assist also provides support to football associations outside of Europe by inviting them to participate in U16 and WU16 development tournaments hosted by UEFA member associations”, Chris said.
For the next round of tournaments, UEFA Assist organizers are again inviting OFC teams to participate in the tournament scheduled for May 2020 in Latvia in Northern Europe.
“We have discussed the potential teams with the OFC technical department and I am delighted to invite your U16 boys national team to participate in the U16 boys tournament in Latvia from 7-13 May 2020”.
“This is a great opportunity for Vanuatu”, Chris emphasized.
VFF just completed its National Youth League Championship in the U15 and U17 category in Luganville, and coaches were scouting players that will be eligible and fit to play in the UEFA Assist tournament.
UEFA Assist will cover the costs for a delegation of twenty-eight people which includes eight staff.
Participating Teams
- Latvia
- Armenia
- St Lucia (TBC)
- Vanuatu
Where is Latvia?
Latvia is a country on the Baltic Sea between Lithuania and Estonia. Its landscape is marked by wide beaches as well as dense, sprawling forests. Latvia’s capital is Riga, home to notable wooden and art nouveau architecture, a vast Central Market and a medieval Old Town with St. Peter’s Church. Riga’s museums include the Latvian Ethnographic Open-Air Museum, showcasing local crafts, food and music.
Team Profiles
In 1937, the Latvian team participated in the first qualification tournament for the 1938 World Cup. Latvia were placed in Group 8, alongside Austria and Lithuania. Latvia beat Lithuania 4–2 in Riga.
The team attempted to qualify to the World Cup finals tournament for the first time during the 1994 World Cup qualification, when they were eliminated in the first qualification round by Saint Vincent and the Grenadines in 1992.
In the CONCACAF 2014 FIFA World Cup qualification Saint Lucia played Aruba in the first qualifying round – losing the first leg 4–2 in Aruba. The return leg in Saint Lucia ended in a 4–2 victory after 90 minutes, sending the tie into extra time, and then to penalty kicks. Saint Lucia won the shoot-out 5–4 and advanced to the main draw for the 2014 FIFA World Cup. Saint Lucia were then grouped with Canada, Saint Kitts and Nevis, and Puerto Rico in Group D of the second qualifying round. Saint Lucia were eliminated from World Cup qualification after finishing last in their group with one point as a result of one draw and five losses. In 2014 the team won the Windward Islands Tournament after beating Dominica 2–0,Grenada 1–0 and a tie with Saint Vincent & The Grenadines.
Vanuatu caused another shock in the 2007 South Pacific Games by knocking out the Solomon Islands for bronze medal and also enable to enter the second stage of qualification for the OFC Nations Cup and consequently a chance with a playoff for the FIFA World Cup in South Africa in 2010.
