Gothia Cup is a youth association football tournament held annually in Gothenburg, Sweden, open for both boys and girls of ages 11 to 19 years. With regards to the number of participants, it is the world's largest football tournament: in 2011, a total of 35,200 players from 1567 teams and 72 nations participated. Gothia Cup started in 1975 with 275 participating teams.
Spanning one week in July each year, the event becomes the dominant event in Gothenburg, with (as of 2006) 4,320 games played on 91 fields, and 300,000 visitors to the centre on Heden. According to the tourist authorities of Gothenburg, the 2006 Gothia Cup generated 282 million Swedish kronor in tourist income for Gothenburg city and 118 million kronor in tax income for Sweden.
Teams from several countries participate. These include Sweden, Hungary, Poland, Germany, Austria, Norway, Finland, United States, Switzerland, Belgium, Scotland, Northern Ireland, Iceland, France, Bolivia, Denmark, Canada, Australia, Philippines, Bangladesh, Malaysia, Thailand, Mongolia, Kenya, India, Mexico, El Salvador, Guatemala, Venezuela, Colombia, Peru, Argentina, Brazil, England, Zambia, Uganda, Tanzania, South Africa, Zimbabwe, Sahrawi Arab Democratic Republic, Morocco, Sudan, Palestine, Jordan, Iraq, Algeria, Lebanon, Russia, Georgia, Kazakhstan, Armenia, Moldavia, Ukraine, Czech Republic, Romania, Latvia, Estonia, Lithuania, Republic of Macedonia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo, Spain, Greece, Malta, Montenegro, Croatia, Turkey, Lebanon, Indonesia, Italy, Slovakia, and Serbia.
The opening ceremony and finals are held on Ullevi.
Famous quotes containing the word cup:
“If you desire to drain to the dregs the fullest cup of scorn and hatred that a fellow human being can pour out for you, let a young mother hear you call dear baby “it.””
—Jerome K. Jerome (1859–1927)