The 10th Szekler–Hungarian Youth Football Tournament began on Monday morning with an official opening ceremony at the Burus Csaba Sport Park in Miercurea Ciuc.

The 10th Szekler–Hungarian Youth Football Tournament began on Monday morning with an official opening ceremony at the Burus Csaba Sport Park in Miercurea Ciuc. The organisers of the jubilee edition of the youth tournament are the Consulate General of Hungary in Miercurea Ciuc, the Municipality of Miercurea Ciuc, the Municipality of Csepel, and, of course, the host club, FK Csíkszereda.

U13 boys’ teams will take to the pitch during the two-day tournament: alongside FK Csíkszereda, Sepsi OSK, KTE Kecskemét, Videoton FCF, Csepel FC USE and Marosvásárhelyi 1898 SE are taking part in the jubilee event. The teams will compete in a round-robin system, meaning that every participant will play against every opponent. From the beginning, however, the aim of the tournament has not been only about the results of the matches: according to the organisers’ intention, through the common language of football, connections, friendships and lasting community experiences are created.

At the opening ceremony, the participants were first welcomed by István Dolhai, Consul General of Hungary in Miercurea Ciuc. In his speech, he stressed that holding the tournament for the tenth time is a shared joy and honour for the organisers.

“Football is very important, sport is very important and, of course, the result is important too, but the most important thing is that we are here, we are together, we are in Szeklerland, we are talking to each other, and friendships are being formed,” said the consul general, who wished the children, coaches and accompanying adults good football, many conversations and successful days.

Lénárd Borbély, the mayor of Csepel, recalled that the Szekler–Hungarian Youth Football Tournament was launched in 2015, at the initiative of the Municipality of Csepel. As he said, there had also been difficulties over the years, including the pandemic period, yet the tournament has successfully reached its jubilee, tenth edition.

“When it started, it was only a dream that this tournament would last for such a long time. I hope that later we will be able to say: these were the first ten years,” said Lénárd Borbély. He added that the foundation of the tournament is the love of football and play, but at the beginning an equally important goal was “to deepen the experience of Szekler–Hungarian, Hungarian–Hungarian togetherness”.

Attila Korodi, the mayor of Miercurea Ciuc, emphasised the community-building power of the tournament and encouraged the young players to enjoy the game, make friends and get to know one another.

“Ten years is a long time. Many of those who were here at this tournament ten years ago are now playing in the first or second division,” the mayor of Miercurea Ciuc pointed out. He added that it may well be that today’s meetings will later turn into reunions on the pitch in senior league matches.

At the end of the opening ceremony, Zoltán Szondy, president of FK Csíkszereda, wished the participating teams the best of luck. The head of the host club wished the young footballers matches free of arguments and injuries, fair play and a tournament held in a good atmosphere.

The 10th Szekler–Hungarian Youth Football Tournament will conclude on Tuesday afternoon, at around 14:00, with the awards ceremony at the Burus Csaba Sport Park.

R. A.
Photo: Zoltán Pál