2019 Future Players Gauteng talent search winners announced

This year’s competition hosted a total of 10 000 Gauteng pupils, comprising of both boys and girls between the ages of 12 and 16.

Thousands of hopefuls were narrowed down to the best of the best, with the top 120 featuring in the semi-finals. After more gruelling trials, the final round consists of a small group of 10 pupils.

From the entire field, three outstanding pupils and one masterful coach were crowned as the 2019 Future Players Gauteng talent search winners at Nike Centre in Soweto last Saturday.

This year, Ayeesha Moosa from Nirvana Secondary School in Lenasia, Bulelani Mkhwanazi from Emshugantambo High School in Pimville and Mpho Maikhoso from Reashoma Secondary School in Protea North, and the sole coach, Setshedi More from Pimville, have been identified through the Future Players Gauteng talent search and thus have been invited to join La Liga in Spain later in the year.

“Football is central to the Spanish way of life, with La Liga forming an important part of this culture. The winners will get the chance to train with La Liga clubs, and it’s our hope that this helps them in both their personal and career development,” said Antonio Barradas, the managing director for La Liga South Africa.

“Part of the reason that we as La Liga continue to be part of Future Champions Gauteng is because of our ongoing commitment to help develop football from a grassroots level. It’s been a pleasure to be involved in this initiative once again, and we wish the winners all the best during their travels.”

Philasande Muvevi, director – competitive sport in the Gauteng Department of Sport, Arts, Culture and Recreation, said: “We are thrilled to have once again had such a huge response to the Future Champions Gauteng talent search this year, which showcases the rich pool of talent that we have in our province. We must thank the various sports development programmes throughout Gauteng, which can be seen in the success the province is enjoying in school sport. Football is a vehicle for these youngsters to dream of a better life and we hope that we have helped many on the path to a successful professional career.”

Tournament director, Ray Whelan, had this to say: “We have had enormous success with our talent search in previous years and if our 2019 winners take on board all they have learned, and will learn on their once-in-a-lifetime trip to Spain, then I see no reason why they cannot go on to much bigger things. As ever, we thank our valued partners, including the Gauteng provincial government and La Liga, for making this opportunity open to thousands of young players.”

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