As the main sponsor of the Ajax youth academy, Olympia is once again proud to be the title sponsor of the prestigious tournament. Ticket sales started on Wednesday.
Participants
The participating teams in the fourteenth edition are: Ajax, Anderlecht, Real Madrid, Paris Saint-Germain, Bayer 04 Leverkusen, Sporting Portugal, Olympique Lyon and Future United. The latter is a team composed of talents from Ajax’s international partner clubs.
Director of Football Marijn Beuker: "The Olympia Future Cup is an international and prestigious tournament in which the greatest talents in the world take part. This year as well, with Paris Saint-Germain, Sporting Portugal, Real Madrid, Anderlecht, Olympique Lyon and Bayer 04 Leverkusen, we are welcoming clubs that boast renowned youth academies. Through the participation of teams of this calibre and the stature of the Olympia Future Cup, it provides a fantastic stage on which our talents are challenged. These are matches in which players are stimulated to make decisions under pressure, apply their game intelligence in every facet and show mental resilience against top international opposition. These are precisely the elements that we believe are essential in the development of elite players."
Future United
"New this year is the participation of Future United. Future United is a composite team made up of the greatest talents from several of Ajax's partner clubs. With this team, we offer the greatest talents of our partners a unique platform. In their own way, they are encouraged not only to play against, but also alongside other football cultures. I think it is a fantastic initiative from our Football Partnerships department that demonstrates how important these projects are to us."
"The diversity of football cultures is important to us as a club. We want to expose our youth's talents to international opposition and diverse football cultures. We are convinced that this contributes to their growth and development as players, and at the same time, it helps us continually test our vision and training principles. In that sense, the Olympia Future Cup symbolises what Ajax stands for: developing creative and intelligent footballers who are ready for Champions League level."
Group draw
The Amsterdam-based team have been drawn into Group A alongside Paris Saint-Germain, Sporting Portugal and Future United. Group B consists of Real Madrid, Anderlecht, Olympique Lyon and Bayer 04 Leverkusen.
The group matches will be played on Saturday and Sunday. Finals day will take place on Monday, April 6. Check the schedule here.
Rules
The rules remain the same as during the previous edition. This means matches will be played with effective playing time, the self-pass, a time penalty, kick-ins/dribble-ins, rolling substitutions, and goalkeepers may hold the ball for a maximum of eight seconds. VAR will also be used during the Olympia Future Cup.
