Dubai: The UFL are serious about getting the local community more involved in the professional football league and Al Nasr Club are leading the way.
Ahead of last weekend's final home fixture of the season against Al Dhafra, the training pitches at Al Nasr were abuzz with activity as 300-odd youngsters took part in a junior football festival. But unlike many such tournaments in the past, this one was strung together with the specific aim of achieving a major breakthrough for UAE football.
"For us, this is not just an event, it's our responsibility as a community-based organisation to try and get the public to be an active part of UAE football," said Michael Rodosthenous, deputy executive director of Al Nasr Club.
Near-empty stadiums on UFL matchdays have been a fairly common sight for a while now, and that's exactly what Al Nasr are attempting to change. The club teamed up with iPlatinum group in organising the event which was split into two tournaments, one for schools and the other for dedicated football academies. Members of the two winning squads will enjoy the opportunity to participate in this year's Etisalat Cup final which Al Nasr will host on May 21 either as mascots, flag bearers or half-time activities. And as soon as the festival had ended, the club willingly opened the doors of the Al Maktoum Stadium to the youngsters for the evening's kick off against Al Dhafra.
"I can tell you 95 per cent of the kids here would never have watched a UFL match. Hopefully they can become fans," said Rodosthenous who believes such initiatives can gradually alter the mindset of football lovers in the UAE. "We also had a promotional event for the first match of the season and some became season-ticket holders," he said.
Al Nasr and UAE legend Abdul Rahman Mohammad Abdullah heaped praise on the initative and called on others to follow the lead of the oldest club in the land. "It's a very nice idea," said the man who captained the UAE at the 1990 World Cup. "This also brings together the locals and the expatriate community. It would be good if this happened once a month with different clubs hosting it each time."
Rodosthenous added: "The league needs an example and hopefully we can show people the benefits of having such programmes. We are crossing boundaries in the end as you don't normally get expatriates and locals integrating with each other beyond the malls."
Hamid Barr, CEO of iPlatinum Group said: "Every professional club in Europe or in a top flight league have community programmes. Clubs here don't have that and it's what we're trying to get up and running."
