Pepsi last weekend rewarded soccer enthusiasts who stormed Elekahia Stadium to enjoy and be part of the Port Harcourt edition of the Pepsi Street Cup Tournament with cash and other freebies.
Spartan Soccer Academy, Abuloma, players celebrating after defeating OZ Boys FC by 3-0 at the final of the Pepsi Street Cup Tournament in Port Harcourt.
The morning rain could not stop the soccer lovers who trooped to the stadium as early as 7am in their numbers to either showcase their talents or cheer their teams to victory.
The five-a-side street tournament, which attracted 144 teams from Port Harcourt and its environs, saw Spartan Soccer Academy, Abuloma, dancing home with N500,000 courtesy of Pepsi after defeating OZ Boys FC 3-0 at the final.
OZ Boys FC got N250,000 while the third placed team, Family Love FC, went home with N150,000 in a game that ended in penalty shoot-out.
Speaking with journalists during the event, Marketing Manager, Seven-Up Bottling Company, Port Harcourt, Ben Ejiogu, said Pepsi decided to sponsor the tournament to provide platform to showcase raw football talents in the country and also to promote soccer at the grassroots.
“No time could be better than now to give our consumers a feel of live soccer actions. We know that Port Harcourt people are sports-loving, and this is our own little way to showcase the game of football at its best,” he said.
“As a brand, we are committed to the core passion of Nigerian youths, and the Pepsi Street Cup Tournament is specially designed to achieve this objective.
Pepsi has been involved in the game of football for so many years, that most of the people playing in the national team today were products of Pepsi Football Academy, including Mikel Obi, Osaze Odemwingie and so many in this country.”
Coach of the winning team, Chigozie Onuoha, on behalf of the team, appreciated the brand Pepsi for the gesture.
His words: “I thought it was a scam, but I just believed God. I was optimistic that it will have a good end. It is so interesting. I feel good, and my entire team feels good. We are all happy with Pepsi.”
The tournament has now been held in eight cities since it started in Ibadan on May 30, 2014.
