Abu Dhabi (UAE) – In what turned out to be a nail biter of a final at the 5th edition of the FIFCO World Corporate Champions Cup, Saman Bank from Iran pulled off a victory with just one goal in a penalty shout out that saw defending champion Oman losing a tough game. Asyad from Oman was cruising its way through the tournament only to see a final penalty kick enter the goal to shatter their dreams of a repeat victory.
“The competition was excellent,” said Khalifa Al Wahaibi, Asyad team manager, “these three days have given us a wonderful look at corporate teams from around the world. We were simply unlucky at the final.”
“The final game could have gone in any direction, but thank God it went in our favour,” said Meysam Ghanbari from Saman Bank and the winner of the Golden Boot of the tournament, “we are delighted with this result, and we will take these memories back home to Iran with pride,” he concluded.
The three-day international competition featured 16 teams coming from as far as Iran, Bangladesh, Monaco, England, Gabon and the Democratic Republic of Congo to name a few. This festival of corporate teams is a testament to the long-standing tradition of bringing together the workers of the world through sport in one place to celebrate diversity, friendship and sport.
“We are delighted with the result of this 5th edition,” said Albert Zbily, president of FIFCO, “our commitment to diversity, networking and football is the cornerstone of the organization, and the members have embraced it quite well coming into these games,” he concluded.
With the gracious support of the Abu Dhabi Convention and Exhibition Bureau, FIFCO was able to bring the games to Abu Dhabi as a first. “We hope to be able to continue bringing teams to this part of the world, because of the excellent conditions and the enjoyment it gives to the participating members,” said Bahi Rifai of High 5 Events, the UAE country representative.
“I have participated in three of the last five and will tell you that this one is by far the best one we have every organized,” said Imran Rahman, Director General of FAFCO, “it is a testament to how FIFCO always strives to keep improving year after year,” he concluded.
The International Federation of Corporate Football (FIFCO) is the world governing body of Corporate Football with headquarters in Montreal, Canada. Located in over 60 countries and working with more than 150.000 corporations, FIFCO is the organizer of the World Corporate Champions Cup premier corporate tournament in the world.
