FIFA President launches football school championship in DRC

The president of the International Football Federation (Fifa) Gianni Infantino launched Saturday the project to organize a school championship in the Democratic Republic of Congo that will be replicated at the African level, in the presence of President Felix Tshisekedi, current chairman of the African Union (AU).

"We launched today a project of a competition, a school championship here (in DRC) but we will replicate this throughout Africa from (the Congolese experience) because education, schools and football must be in symbiosis," Gianni Infantino told the press.

"We have a problem at the sporting level, but as Fifa has just allowed us to go back to the grassroots in schools, it allows us to have athletes who have a good level. It also allows our children to be physically strong," said Congolese Sports Minister Amos Mbayo.

This is the second time that the world football boss has visited the DRC after his first visit in November 2019 in Lubumbashi, during festivities marking the 80th anniversary of the Congolese club that has won the most titles in African football competitions: TP Mazembe.

The president of the Fifa closed by Algiers an African tour started since Tuesday which led him to Nouakchott (Mauritania), Bangui (CAR), Brazzaville (Congo) and Kinshasa (DRC), according to a program received by AFP.