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The Gothia Cup is the world's second-largest youth football tournament, hosted in the city of Gothenburg in Sweden, which sees around 1700 teams participating each year.
Minerva Academy, who had participated in the U13 category, trounced the Brazilian academy outfit Ordin FC on Saturday (July 22) by a margin of 3-1 to become the first Indian club to lift the prestigious trophy.
This is another feather in the hat of a burgeoning academy based in Mohali, Punjab, which also lifted the Mina Cup in UAE in 2022. However, the renown of the Gothia Cup is of an even higher scale with the likes of Zlatan Ibrahimovic, Xabi Alonso, Alan Shearer, and Andrea Pirlo all having featured here as youngsters.
Minerva had a smooth run on their way to the final
In the Round of 16, the Indian side were up against the Swedish team Onnereds IK. In what turned out to be a complete wipeout, Minerva netted 10 goals, conceding just one.
After brushing away Onnereds, the Indian academy had a tougher test, this time against another Swedish outfit - Bellevue 1. The game ended 3-0 in favor of the away side who comprehensively defeated the hosts.
The semifinals pitted Minerva against Tecnifutbol Academy of Spain, who have been established only a year ago and closely follow principles set by the Netherlands and FC Barcelona great Johan Cruyff. Goals from Jayed and Sanathoi ensured that the Indian side could progress to the finals, sweeping away the Spanish academy with style and vigor.
The final was going to be a tighter encounter, against Brazilian club Ordin FC - an illustrious club with a famed academy worldwide. In 2019, the club lifted three major trophies in the youth footballing circuit - the Helsinki Cup, the Gothia Cup, and the Dana Cup.
However, the boys showed no signs of nervousness from the get-go, taking the bull by the horn and netting 2 goals within the first five minutes itself. Ordin found their feet soon enough and cleverly worked out a goal. However, Minerva scored another immediately, taking a 3-1 lead to halftime.
The scoreline would remain the same as the game came to a close. Minerva were successful in keeping the fierce Brazilians at bay in the second half. As the final whistle blew, tears welled up in the eyes of Minerva's goalkeeper, young Yoihenba Khwairakpam who tried to find words during the emotional moment.
"This is a significant day for Indian football. We have worked hard for months for this. It's very emotional, especially because we have such strong support from our fans in the stands, cheering for us and our country. It feels tremendous to represent India by winning the Gothia Cup. I believe everyone who supported us throughout this journey is as proud of us as we are of them," he said.
It truly is a tremendous moment, and one that the Indian Football fraternity is sure to cherish.
