Thailand’s Speedy Blue and Latin America’s Orange Bolts were announced the global champions of the 2022 Gatorade 5v5 Football Tournament in Paris. In celebration of the brand’s long-standing partnership with the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Women’s Football, Gatorade’s annual grassroots tournament continues to inspire the next generation of athletes and drive equal opportunity in sport for both young men and women. To foster the young talent and help them achieve greatness, Gatorade put all the finalists through a coaching clinic with legends of the game, Roberto Carlos, Robert Pires and Asmir Begovic. The athletes were on hand to share expert advice helping strengthen and improve their mental and physical game ahead of the finals. It didn’t stop there as the future G.O.A.Ts also had the opportunity to train with Barça Academy coaches from the official football school of FC Barcelona, who have a rich history of producing world-class talent, as they hosted a masterclass following La Masia methodology.
This year Gatorade continued to create life-changing moments for the youth athletes as they were surprised with a football ‘Legends Match’ against men’s and women’s UEFA Champions League superstars, including Cafu, Luis Garcia and Karen Carney. Taking place ahead of the Global Finals, the finalists stepped onto the turf to play shoulder to shoulder with some of the game's greats.
Mark Kirkham, SVP and Chief Marketing Officer at PepsiCo, commented: “Since its conception, the Gatorade 5v5 football program has been creating tangible and formative experiences for over 100,000 young amateur athletes from across the globe. After a two-year hiatus, Gatorade 5v5 demonstrates our long-term ambitions to support these athletes on their journey, providing opportunities, resources, and access to world class expertise along the way. Being at the 5v5 finals in Paris with the athletes to witness the dedication and passion it takes to represent their country and compete on a global stage has been incredible. We’re excited to see them go on to achieve big things in their careers.”