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CFA president, George Koumas:

“We are very proud to stage this event. We want to take football to every school in Cyprus, and as a federation have donated footballs to every school and opened coaching academies for teachers, so that they can transfer skills to the kids.

“We are a small country and we could not do this alone without the assistance from UEFA, who transfer the knowledge to the coaches in our administration. It’s very important to us and a big thank you to UEFA, because without this we cannot make the step forwards.”

UEFA Football in Schools: four more years

On Monday, European football’s governing body announced a renewal of the Football in Schools programme, committing €11m between 2024 and 2028 to getting more children playing in school.

Early exposure to the sport helps not just develop a love of the game but encourages a healthy, active lifestyle and teaches important motor skills, as well as developing life skills such as teamwork, respect and fair play.

Since its launch in 2020, the programme has enjoyed incredible success across Europe, and by 2024 will have reached more than 2.8 million children in all 55 UEFA member national associations, with 64,000 teachers trained to deliver high-quality sessions.