Tournaments like Arsenal’s ‘Emirates Cup’ and AJAX’s ‘Amsterdam Tournament’ have become big draws for football fans looking for some quality football in the summer season. With high quality clubs and big venues, you almost get the same experience of an early season Champions League group stage match in what is the slowest time of the year for the sport.
With both tournaments bringing in big draws, it only seemed right that England’s biggest venue get in on the summer fun with a tournament of their own. So this summer on the 24th & 26th of July, Wembley will play host to four of the biggest clubs in the world in the inaugural ‘Wembley Cup.’
Sports and media group IMG was the catalyst behind the tournament that will see Tottenham Hotspur, Barcelona, Celtic and Egyptian club Al-Ahly face each other in a tournament that’s being billed as the “carnival of football.”
“We are delighted with the clubs we have attracted to play in this cup”said Shiva Misra, Vice-President of IMG Football. “Of course, Wembley’s draw for football teams is extremely strong, so that made the task of recruiting teams easier. Venues are synonymous with a certain sport, such as tennis at Wimbledon, the Grand Prix in Monaco and horse-racing at places like Aintree, Epsom and Cheltenham. Wembley is commonly referred to as ‘the home of football’ and that’s exactly how we see it.”
“Could this tournament become an annual competition? Absolutely. The future of the Wembley Cup will all depend on this year’s event, so everyone at IMG is determined to make it as successful as possible.”
Spurs will act as the home club of sorts for the matches that will allow London-based fans to see the likes of Lionel Messi, Thierry Henry, Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink and Aiden McGeady in the same stadium. Better yet, fans will also be able to see two matches per day for a reasonable £29 per person.
The name of the tournament is still under negotiations. At the moment the event is being billed as the ‘Wembley Cup,’ but there have been rumours that the event’s name could change if a sponsor meets the current asking price for the naming rights.
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