Amateur footballers from across the globe are looking forward to the return this year of the world’s biggest five-a-side tournament.

The competition, which will be hosted by Qatar for the first time, sees players battle it out in a unique footballing format. There are no goalkeepers, and every time a team scores, an opposing player is eliminated. Matches last for 10 action-packed minutes, or until one team loses all its players. This year, there’s also an added twist, with all the teams that had qualified for the cancelled 2021 event being invited back to compete.

“It’s been a long wait, but finally we’ll get to see some fantastic teams from around the world coming together this year,” said an excited Neymar Jr. “I can’t wait to see who comes out on top in this special ‘Super Final’.”

Joining the already qualified teams will be a brand-new group of winners from the various upcoming national qualifiers around the globe, making this the biggest tournament yet. For the first time ever, it also opens the tantalising prospect of ‘derby’ matches - where two teams from the same country could go head-to-head against each other.

Neymar Jr looks forward to two newly crowned champions in the mixed and women’s categories, where the prize is not only the coveted winners’ trophy, but also the opportunity to play a match against the Brazilian superstar.

“It’s always an exciting challenge to take on the tournament champions,” added the 30-year-old forward. “They get the chance to try a few of their tricks on me, and I reply with a few of mine. It’s just great fun for everyone involved.”

It’s shaping up to be a fascinating year of football for Neymar Jr, who is still hunting trophies with Paris Saint-Germain in Ligue 1 and the Champions League. Then, before he returns to Qatar later in the year to try and fire Brazil to glory at the World Cup, he’ll join the planet’s best amateur players for the World Final of this tournament which will take place at Qatar Foundation in Doha - a non-profit organization made up of more than 50 entities working in education, research, and community development.

With a host of teams from last year already assured of their ticket to the Red Bull Neymar Jr´s Five World Final, attention now turns to the upcoming local and national qualifiers. To find out which countries are participating, and details on how to register a team, players can visit www.redbullneymarjrsfive.com.

Source: Press Release

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Vrinda Abilash

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