4th APAC Cup: A festival of football and Barça
118 games, 300 goals and seven countries participate over five days in Nara
The rain didn't help matters at all, but this year's fourth edition of the APAC was still an unprecedented success. There was a magnificent atmosphere despite the foul weather doing its best to spoil the opening day, and some matches had to be rescheduled. However,, all teams were eventually able to play their assigned matches, resulting in five great days of football.
38 teams and over 400 participants were divided into two categories: U10 and U12. Besides the six Japanese academies (Nara, Katsushika, Hiroshima, Aichi, Fukuoka, and Yokohama), there were also Barça Escola Barcelona, Barça Academy Manila, and Barça Academy Jalal Abad, as well as camps from Australia, Italy, and Taiwan, with the Nara Club also competing as guests.
In the U12 category, Barça Academy Nara retained last year's title, beating the players from the Italian camps in the final 4-0. Before that, they had narrowly beaten Barça Escola Barcelona 2-1 in the semi-finals.
The Italians also reached the U10 final, but this one they won, Barça Academy Katsushika missing out on penalties after a 1-1 draw. They also qualified for the final thanks to a win over Barça Escola in the semis, 2-1.
Besides the matches, the tournament also offered a unique cultural experience for the participants and their families. A visit was organized to Kyoto, one of Japan's most interesting cities, known for preserving its traditional style. There was also time for a visit to Nara's Natural Park, where players enjoyed local culture and had fun feeding the deer.
Another great moment was a special Friendship Dinner, to which each team brought a small gift from their country to exchange with others, creating a warm and enjoyable moment where they showed how they were able to communicate even without sharing a common language.
The opening ceremony featured a Japanese matsuri, including an exciting ninja show (in which some players took part), followed by food trucks on the pitch offering typical Japanese dishes. Matsuri is a traditional celebration of cultural, spiritual, or seasonal events with activities like parades, dances, music, and traditional food, often linked to temples or shrines.
