This year’s MICFootball tournament was presented in the Girona Provincial Council’s plenary hall, with Àlex Moreno, a player for Girona FC’s first team and the tournament’s patron, in attendance, along with Pau Cubarsí and Kika Nazareth, who had attended the presentation in Barcelona.

Àlex Moreno recalled his experience as a MIC player in 2010 with Fundació Atlètic Vilafranca. “It was an incredible experience. Leaving your hometown and surrounding area to play against such great and talented teams and national squads as China and Brazil,” Moreno reminisced, adding, “We beat China on penalties, and in the quarterfinals, we faced Brazil and lost; they were very good.” The Girona FC player also stated that he is “very proud to be back here and to be the godfather of the MIC.”

The presentation was also attended by the Deputy Delegate of the Spanish Government in Girona, Pere Parramon; the President and Director of MICFootball, David Bellver and Maite Colomer; the Territorial Representative of Sport in Girona, Narcís Casassa; and the Director of Institutions at CaixaBank in Girona, Gemma Batlle. Mayors and councilors from the municipalities hosting the championship, sponsors, and collaborators also attended the event, which served to reveal all the details of this edition.

A record-breaking year and a history with more than 100,000 players

For the third consecutive year, MICFootball will surpass the 400 registered teams and 8,000 players mark. The 24th edition will boast record participation and a star-studded lineup. Across 10 categories, from U12 A to U19, including a women’s category and an inclusive category for athletes with disabilities, there will be a total of 482 teams from over forty countries across five continents. This high level of participation will mean more matches than ever before in the Girona region—more than 1,200.

The 24th edition of MICFootball will be special for many reasons. Beyond being the year before its 25th anniversary, it will mark a milestone for the tournament as the event surpasses 100,000 participating players in its history.   

Iconic names like Leo Messi, Neymar Jr., Carvajal, Marcelo, Rodri, Cole Palmer, Lamine Yamal, and Salah are on this list of MICPlayers who are part of our history. However, Joan, Mike, Gianluca, David, Carla, Ben, and thousands of other players also have their names engraved in the competition’s hall of fame.   

More than one hundred thousand different paths that began in the same place: MICFootball. Stories of overcoming adversities, dreams that have come true, unique experiences, and life-changing opportunities, all with football as the common thread.  

This Holy Week, the Costa Brava will add more than 8,500 players to a figure that is already a milestone for the tournament—enough to fill the largest stadiums on the planet. In this upcoming edition, we will welcome players from 42 countries, proving that the tournament remains a global benchmark.  

Only a few days remain until the start of the 24th edition, which will bring together more than 480 teams from around the world. Once again, the Costa Brava will host what has become a classic international event during Holy Easter week.  

Up to forty-five municipalities will have the privilege of hosting the world’s best youth football, and the stands of the 60 stadiums will be packed with fans eager to enjoy the high-level matches taking place. 

The tournament will be available to watch, upon registration, via free streaming on the MICFootball TV platform (www.micfootballtv.com). Additionally, Movistar+, Gol, Esport3, and La Xarxa will also broadcast select matches from the competition.  

The tournament’s own platform will broadcast all the matches played on the ten fields where the cameras will be installed: Figueres (Vilatenim), Pals, L’Escala, Sant Feliu de Guíxols (Vilartagues), Roses (Mas Oliva), Vidreres, Arbúcies, Lloret de Mar, Sant Antoni de Calonge 1, and Tossa de Mar.   

Teams that are not playing in these stadiums and want their games to be streamed so they can be enjoyed from anywhere in the world will have to hire the exclusive streaming service offered by Net Stream TV by sending an email to netstreamtv23@gmail.com or by calling +34 629 87 23 06. 

Regarding the different television channels covering the MICFootball, please note the following: Esport3 will broadcast some of the U14 Final Phase matches, which will be played on April 3 and 4. For its part, Movistar+ will broadcast some of the U12A Final Stage matches, which will be played on April 3, 4, and 5. These two channels will be joined by Gol and La Xarxa, which will broadcast the finals of the tournament’s nine categories.  

 

 

Una publicación compartida de MICFootball (@micfootball)

With just one week to go before the start of the tournament where the future stars are born, the organizers have already announced the dates for the finals in all categories.  

Once again, Palamós and Figueres will host the matches that will determine the champions of the 24th edition.  

On Saturday, April 4, the Estadi de Palamós-Costa Brava will host the finals for the U12B, U12A, and F16 categories, in that order, during an afternoon session starting at 4:30 p.m. In addition, Vidreres will also host the final of the MIC Integra, the category for players with disabilities, which will be played entirely on Saturday. 

Sunday, April 5, will be a busy day as the remaining six tournament finals will be played. Figueres will host the decisive matches for the U13, U15, and U19 categories at the Estadi de Vilatenim starting at 10:00 a.m.  

Meanwhile, the Estadi de Palamós-Costa Brava will host the finals for the U14, U16, and U18 categories. This series of matches will begin at 9:30 a.m. on Sunday.  

Admission is free, though tickets must be picked up at the ticket offices of the respective stadiums to attend the tournament finals. Capacity will be limited to the maximum allowed at both venues.  

MICFootball 2026 will officially kick off next Wednesday, April 1, with the traditional opening ceremony at the Estadi de Vilatenim. That day, more than 7,000 people will be in Figueres to witness the start of an edition in which 1,200 matches will be played over five days.  

The stadium gates will open at 10 a.m., and from that moment on, Pol Corredoira and Héctor Huguet will liven up the ceremony with music and audience engagement until its conclusion.  

The opening ceremony will kick off at 11:00 AM with an exhibition match between FC Barcelona and AS Roma’s U16 teams, which will be broadcast live on MICFootballTV and Esport3.  

Once the match is over, the atmosphere in the stands will begin to heat up, creating an incredible festive atmosphere that, year after year, exceeds the expectations of the attendees. This is when the traditional flag parade will begin, with the participation of representatives from the 482 participating teams and the 42 nationalities present at the tournament.  

Before the ceremony concludes, the dance group Dance Me will perform a synchronized and energetic choreography that will leave everyone speechless. Finally, the authorities present at the stadium will say a few words to mark the official start of MICFootball 2026.  

Tickets

All teams participating in MICFootball 2026, whether or not they are staying with the organization, have guaranteed access to the Stadium as long as they have confirmed their decision to attend to the event. The rest of the public will have to wait for the availability of capacity to access it.

The CosmoCaixa Science Museum in Barcelona was the setting for the presentation of the 24th edition of the international grassroots football tournament MICFootball (MIC-Mediterranean International Cup) this afternoon, which was attended by Pau Cubarsí & Kika Nazareth, footballers from the first men’s and women’s teams of FC Barcelona.

The competition will take place between March 31 and April 5 in more than 40 municipalities in the Girona region and will do so, again, with a record participation of 464 teams. The more than 8,500 registered players will be divided into 9 categories, one of them women’s, to play 1,143 matches in around sixty fields. The Vilatenim stadium in Figueres will once again host the opening ceremony and will repeat, together with Palamós, as the venue for the finals that will be held between Saturday and Sunday of that week.

Recognized as one of the most prestigious grassroots football tournaments in the world and with a history that goes back more than two decades, the 2026 MICFootball has once again had top-level footballers as ambassadors. Pau Cubarsí, who participated in the 2019, 2022 and 2023 editions of the MIC wearing the Barça shirt, explained that, for him, the MIC is “something spectacular. A week away from home with your friends and playing football, which is what we like the most. And above all if you can win, it is something incredible”. Cubarsí also recommended that the players who will participate in the tournament “enjoy themselves, it is an experience that will accompany them for the rest of their lives”. For her part, Kika Nazareth also encouraged the players to enjoy playing, “for me it is the most important thing, because when you don’t enjoy football, things don’t go well. So enjoy yourself and smile”.

Today’s presentation also included the participation of Abel Garcia, Secretary General of the Department of Sports of the Generalitat; David Bellver and Maite Colomer, president and director of MICFootball; Jordi Masquef, Deputy for Sports of the Girona Provincial Council, First Vice-President of the Costa Brava-Girona Tourist Board and Mayor of Figueres; Carolina Hernández, Sponsorship Manager of CaixaBank, and Valentí Farràs, director of CosmoCaixa.

In twenty days’ time, the ball will start rolling on more than fifty pitches along the Costa Brava, which will once again enjoy the best youth football in the world during the Easter holidays. But first, on Friday 13 March at 4 pm, the CosmoCaixa in Barcelona will host the official presentation of the 24th edition of the tournament. 

FC Barcelona men’s and women’s first team players Pau Cubarsí and Kika Nazareth will be the ambassadors of this year’s edition. The presentation will also be attended by Abel García, Secretary General of the Department of Sports of the Generalitat; David Bellver and Maite Colomer, President and Director of MICFootball; Jordi Masquef, Deputy for Sports of the Provincial Council of Girona, First Vice-President of the Costa Brava-Girona Tourist Board and Mayor of Figueres; Carolina Hernández, head of Sponsorship at CaixaBank, and Valentí Farràs, director of CosmoCaixa. Sports journalist Gerard Romero will be in charge of presenting the event. 

The event will mark the official kick-off for the next edition of MICFootball, which over the years has featured illustrious figures such as Neymar Jr, Pep Guardiola, Ronaldinho, Aitana Bonmatí, Alexia Putellas, Andrés Iniesta, Dani Olmo and Vicente del Bosque, among many others. 

Last Thursday, February 26, we held the MICFootball 2026 Group Stage Draw live on our official YouTube channel. The 464 teams participating in this 24th edition met their first three opponents in the tournament, which will kick off on April 1st on the Costa Brava.  

Marta Blabia and Miguel Lois presented the draw in a professional and entertaining way in Catalan, Spanish, and English. The draw lasted more than three hours and was followed by viewers from more than 50 countries. India, Spain, and the US were the countries with the most viewers worldwide.  

In terms of data, the event was a huge success: more than 30,000 total views, over 10,000 interactions in the chat, and up to 3.7 million views on Instagram throughout the week, in addition to an increase of 3,000 followers on that same platform.  

All in all, it is fair to say that, despite the variety of devices that allow us to connect to the internet today, we far exceeded the figures for 2025. Twenty percent of users followed the draw on their computers; 33% did so on television, and almost half (47%) enjoyed the event on their mobile phones. 

Our deepest appreciation goes towards the incredible work of the entire MICSports team, HIGH Produccions High-Video, the support of our partners, sponsors, and institutions, and, of course, all the people who followed the event from every corner of the planet.  

The draw for the MICFootball 2026 Group Stage took place this Thursday, February 26th. You can check the groups for the 24th edition here, category by category.

Some days are highlighted in red and today is one of them. The 24th edition of the tournament where the future stars are born kicks off with its first special event: the Group Stage draw.  

Starting at 7:00 p.m. CET and live on our official YouTube channel, the teams will find out their first three opponents in the competition, which kicks off on 1 April on the Costa Brava. 

The order of the categories drawn will be ascending, according to age. So, we will start by announcing the groups in the U12B category and then move through all the age groups until we reach the U19s.  

Follow the draw with even more excitement on our social media channels, where we will be posting the groups for each category in real time.  

Good luck to all the teams!