KONAMI and FC Barcelona Foundation detail joint Asian youth football initiative to bring ‘FutbolNet’ project to Indonesia
Sydney, 22nd June 2017 – Konami Digital Entertainment B.V. and Premium Partner FC Barcelona, has outlined its plans to promote ground roots football in Indonesia, following KONAMI’s $100,000 donation to the club’s FC Barcelona Foundation.
KONAMI enjoys Premium Partner status with FC Barcelona and has forged strong links via the Spanish club’s enthusiastic support for the publisher’s PES series of football games, which enjoys exclusive use of the Camp Nou stadium and access to its playing talent to ensure they are perfectly recreated in game.
Both KONAMI and FC Barcelona are also committed to working together to assist the club’s FC Barcelona Foundation charity in its great work. KONAMI donated $100,000 to promote grass roots projects and requested the funds be used towards an initiative based in Asia. FC Barcelona Foundation has proposed it takes its FutbolNet project to Indonesia from July. The FutbolNet idea introduces structured coaching and training sessions based on the club’s key principals of bringing the positive values of sport and education to over 450,000 children, youths and young adults and has been expanded to 50 regions.
The KONAMI-sponsored Indonesian project will be used to introduce, train and facilitate the expansion of the FutbolNet principals in North Jakarta and West Java. It will train 60 coaches up to FC Barcelona standard, with applicants from 21-40 eligible to apply. These coaches will then be deployed and supported to oversee the coaching of 3000 children aged 6-12. Coaching will take place between July 2017 – January 2018 and will promote the development of tolerance and respect via individuals and communities, and the promotion of female participation in sport. Similarly, those embarking on the coaching course will receive training and certified status, enhancing their future employability options.
“We are delighted to be working on bringing FC Barcelona’s fantastic FutbolNet project to Indonesia,” stated Masami Saso, President of Konami Digital Entertainment B.V. “FC Barcelona’s quest to develop the young and vulnerable via the promotion of teamwork is an admirable project, and we are delighted to be helping extend its reach. The PES series has benefited greatly through the support of FC Barcelona and we are proud to be a part of a project that will bring great opportunity for Indonesia, proving that sport and the ethos of winners can greatly benefit local communities.”
“KONAMI’s enthusiasm for extending the good work of the FutbolNet project has been incredible to see,” offered Mr. Jordi Cardoner i Casaus, First Vice President of FC Barcelona and FC Barcelona Foundation. “KONAMI’s generous donation to the FC Barcelona Foundation will make a huge difference to the coaches and young people who partake. We thank them for their support and look forward to seeing the rewards of their investment.”
The FC Barcelona Foundation proves the Catalan giant is ‘More Than A Club’, and was established 22 years ago with the mandate to support vulnerable children and youths via sport and education. The Foundation works within the parameters of the United Nation’s ‘Sports 4 Development’ framework, using its ‘FutbolNet‘ program to deliver sporting activities that develop tolerance and respect via individuals and communities. It has expanded globally via key partnerships and now covers South America, the Middle East, Africa and Asia.
KONAMI’s latest football iteration, PES 2018 will be released for PlayStation®4 and Xbox One™.
For more information, please visit:
- https://www.konami.com/wepes/2018/
- www.twitter.com/officialpes
- www.twitter.com/pesleague
- www.facebook.com/PES
- www.youtube.com/officialpes
About Konami Group
KONAMI HOLDINGS CORPORATION was established in 1973, and became a holding company of the Konami Group on March 31, 2006. KONAMI HOLDINGS CORPORATION covers the fields of “Digital Entertainment Business”, “Health & Fitness Business”, “Gaming & Systems Business” and “Amusement Business”. KONAMI HOLDINGS CORPORATION went public on Tokyo Stock Exchange in 1988 and the London Stock Exchange in 1999. Konami Digital Entertainment B.V. is a wholly-owned subsidiary, responsible for popular franchises like Metal Gear Solid, Silent Hill and Pro Evolution Soccer amongst other top sellers. Konami Group is also the manufacturer of the wildly popular Yu-Gi-Oh! TRADING CARD GAME, which has sold more than 25 billion cards worldwide. For more information concerning Konami Digital Entertainment and its products, please visit https://www.konami.com.
About FC Barcelona
FC Barcelona was founded 116 years ago in 1899, and is unique in many ways. The club is owned by its more than 143,000 members and can boast of being the most successful club in Europe over the last ten years. In that time they have won four of the Club’s five Champions League titles and seven of their 24 domestic league titles. Due to its very special personality, ‘Barça’ is recognized as being ‘more than a club’. The team’s distinctive style of play is projected around the world by the best players and coaches of their time in combination with club’s famous reliance on homegrown talent.
All of this goes hand in hand with its ongoing ambition to become the most admired, beloved and global sports institution on the planet. This mission is supported by such core principles as humility, effort, ambition, respect and team-work, while the club is also famed for its commitment to society, which is channeled through the FC Barcelona Foundation and its work to educate children through the positive values of sport. Such unstoppable growth in recent years has led to a global reach of more than 300 million fans and made FC Barcelona a world leader on social media.
