More than 200 volunteers arrived to Lloret de Mar this Monday to make this year’s MICFootball possible once again.

The roles of all these volunteers are varied. Field delegates will be in charge of all matches starting at the scheduled time; the guides will help all teams know and know where they are and where they need to go; the logistics and press teams will ensure that there is no shortage of material or all the information needed to fully enjoy the tournament at all levels and the physiotherapists will take care of the physical setbacks that players may suffer during and outside the match.

All of them have come from all over Catalonia and other European Union countries to help organizing and carrying out the tasks of a tournament that, after two years of pandemic, is now in its twentieth edition, with the intact commitment of dozens of people to make the event, once again, a success at all levels.

Former coach Juan Carlos Unzué has been the star of the first MICFootball 2022 volunteer day. He was diagnosed with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS), a neurodegenerative and incurable disease that progressively paralyzes the muscles, back in 2019. The arrival of ALS completely changed Unzué’s life, but the former goalkeeper has decided to devote all his time to explaining a disease that is still too unknown through talks and conferences such as the one he has given today at the Hotel Evenia Olympic in Lloret de Mar as part of the “Sport and Life” training day organized by the Diputació de Girona & Vibliotec.

Unzué emphasized that sport and, more specifically, his role as a goalkeeper, have helped him to grow as a person and to accept the process of living with ALS. “Sport gives us the opportunity to acquire values such as commitment, resilience and empathy.”

A new vital stage where an appreciation of the present and the present stands out, enjoying the present without being obsessed with the future, and an apology for vulnerability, relying on the immediate environment. With admirable vitality and optimism, he wanted to share some of the most complicated experiences he has had as a coach. Experiences from which he has learned great lessons that have undoubtedly inspired the entire team of the tournament.

PHOTOGALLERY

The Camp Vell of Banyoles will host the Pre-MICFootball next Tuesday, April 12, in the afternoon. This is a one-day competition that is played with clubs participating in MICFootball that are already being prepared in Girona days before the premiere. This year, six youth teams (U18 and U20) will take part in: four teams from the United States (FC Central Los Angeles, Soccer Club Central, Peloteros USA and FC California-Los Angeles) and the two hosts (Club Esportiu Banyoles and Atlètic Club Banyoles).

Juanjo Rovira, MICFootball’s director, is confident that the aperitif of the tournament in Banyoles “we can enjoy, it will be a festive day that we will do before the competition. It will be very special because they will be the first matches of the firm MICFootball in three years. I thank Banyoles City Council and the clubs for their collaboration and participation. ”

The mayor of Banyoles, Miquel Noguer, was pleased that “the city has the opportunity to host a pre-MICFootball tournament, after a two-year hiatus due to the pandemic”. Noguer added that “recovering Pre-MICFootball is great news for a city like Banyoles that is clearly committed to sports, also basic”.

Banyoles City Councilor for Sports, Jordi Congost, also emphasized “the opportunity for the sports clubs and young sportsmen of the city’s two football clubs to be able to compete with international teams in our country” .

Banyoles will make the Camp Vell available and the games, of 25 minutes each, will be played between 5pm and 8.40pm. The six teams will be divided into two groups and the final will be played at 8.15pm. The first games will be Atlètic Club Banyoles-FC Central Los Angeles (5pm) and CE Banyoles-Peloteros USA (5.30pm).

Take the most up-to-date MICFootball 2022 game dates, tipoff times and matchups with you wherever you go by downloading the calendar of the competition right now!

ALL CATEGORIES

This year there will be a total of 5 different Opening Ceremonies. Due to the current situation caused by the pandemic, the organization has opted for this option seeking a better optimization of the room by venues and categories.

Access to the Opening Ceremonies will be guaranteed for all players and teams. No tickets will be required. Family members staying with MICFootball, as well as fans in general, will have free access to Figueres and Palamós. The rest of the inaugurations will depend on the availability at the stands.

This will be the MICFootball’s 2022 inaugurations, which will take place on April 13th.

LLORET DE MAR

Teams from U16 & F20 categories

10am – RCD Espanyol vs CRC Cambridge United (F20)
Parade
Awards ceremony
11.30am – Liverpool vs APFC (U16)

Teams from U18 & U20 categories

5pm – FC Juventus Lloret vs Athletic Club (U20)
Parade
Awards ceremony
6.30pm – Club Futbol Lloret vs Sevilla FC (U20)

FIGUERES

Teams from U13 & U15 categories

9.30am – UE Figueres vs Olympique de Marseille (U15)
10.30am – Athletic Club vs UE Figueres (U13)
‘Dance Me’ performance
Parade
Awards ceremony
Parliaments
Dani Montesinos award ceremony
12pm – FC Barcelona vs VIC Riuprimer Refo FC (U12A)

PALAMÓS

Teams from U12B & U14 categories

5pm – FC Porto vs VIC Riuprimer Refo FC (U14)
Parade
Awards ceremony
6.45pm – CF Sant Feliu de Guíxols vs FC Barcelona (U14)

L’ESTARTIT

Teams from U12A category

10am – Albion SC San Diego vs EF Baix Ter (U12A)
Parade
Awards Ceremony
11.30am – Total Football Academy vs FC L’Escala

The 20th edition of the international MICFootball (MIC-Mediterranean International Cup) tournament was presented today at CaixaBank’s headquarter in Barcelona, as a result of the financial institution’s historic sponsorship of the tournament for 10 years. The event was attended by Nico González and Aitana Bonmatí, FC Barcelona’s football players. The tournament will be held from 12th to 17th April 2022 at Costa Brava and returns after three years with the attendance of 300 teams from about 30 countries and 6.000 participants spread out in 9 categories (from U12 to U20, among men’s and women’s grassroots football and functional diversity). The opening will be held in Figueres –main stage–, Palamós, Lloret i l’Estartit while Roses will be the novelty of the 33 headquarters in Girona that are a part of it.

MICFootball, recognized as one of the world’s most prestigious grassroots football tournaments, has the two blue and scarlet players as godfathers.Nico Gonzalez, who took part in 5 editions of MICFootball with the FC Barcelona’s grassroots football team, has remembered that “for me, MIC is really special because it was my first football tournament with Barça, when we had not yet signed. It was unique. It’s a week that you look forward to and it’s a special tournament that you enjoy with your friends, and which has a lot of follow-up”. Regarding to the first team, the midfielder has pointed out that “we are very excited about the Europa League, winning my first title would be the most special thing that has happened to me in my sporting career. The league? We must believe in it, the dynamics we have are very good, but we don’t want to fool anyone either, it’s complicated”.

Aitana Bonmatí, author yesterday of a goal in the historic FC Barcelona-Real Madrid CF Champions League match (5-2) with 91,553 spectators at the Camp Nou, has asserted that “it was a day hard to assume, I’m out of words, we have received many messages and I want to thank people for their support. When I was a child, I used to dream of playing at Camp Nou. I hope that what happened yesterday was a turning point and that it will go on. The second Champions? Let’s dream, why not? The objective is to reach the final”. The blue and scarlet midfielder didn’t play MICFootball in her grassroots football stage, but “I was a loyal fan of the tournament and when I had finished training at the Ciutat Esportiva, I ran to Girona to watch the matches. Seeing how the boys and girls enjoyed it was great”.

With LaLiga’s clubs and Europe’s leaders

MICFootball, organized by MICSports, adjourned 2020 and 2021 editions because of the pandemic and this year returns from 12th to 17th April. To avoid congestion at the stands, the tournament’s inauguration (13th April) will be held simultaneously in four headquarters: Figueres –with Vilatenim’s stadium as a main stage–, Palamós, Lloret de Mar and l’Estartit. The 9 finals will be divided, as the last time, between Figueres and Palamós, during the weekend. The rest of the tournament’s headquarters are: Bàscara, Begur, Caldes de Malavella, Calonge, Cassà de la Selva, Castell Platja d’Aro, Castelló d’Empúries-Empuriabrava, Fornells de la Selva, Hostalric, l’Escala, la Bisbal d’Empordà, la Jonquera, Llançà, Monells, Mont-ras, Palafrugell, Pals, Quart, Roses, Sant Feliu de Guíxols, Sant Gregori, Sant Pere Pescador, Santa Coloma de Farners, Santa Cristina d’Aro, Sils, Torroella de Montgrí, Tossa de Mar, Vidreres i Vilablareix.

It will be attended by 300 teams from about 30 countries and nearly 6,000 participants, including players and members of the coaching staff. There will be representatives from the United States, Japan, Brazil, Mexico, Chile, Perú, Colombia, Puerto Rico, and South Korea, and, from Europe, from countries such as Italy, Portugal, France, United Kingdom, Sweden, Romania, Israel, and Spain. Players from 12 to 20 years old will take part, divided into 9 categories, from U12 to U20. MICIntegra, aimed at people with functional diversity and supported by l’Obra Social “la Caixa”, will be played for the eighth time, on April 15 in Vidreres.

Among the confirmed teams, there are 11 out of the 20 LaLiga’s clubs (FC Barcelona, Real Madrid CF, RCD Espanyol, Club Atlético de Madrid, Valencia CF, Villarreal CF, Real Betis Balompié, Sevilla FC, Real Sociedad de Fútbol, Athletic Club de Bilbao and RC Celta), and other European leaders, such as Manchester United FC, Liverpool FC and Paris Saint-Germain FC, among others. Television and streaming broadcasts will also be present in this edition and a large part of the tournament can be watched from anywhere in the world.

“The best MIC in history”

The event began with a welcome speech by Alfredo Bustillo, CaixaBank’s Director of Sponsorship. In his speech, he highlighted the role of the organization as “one of the pioneering companies in sports sponsorship with more than 30 years of experience”. He also emphasized the involvement with the tournament, stating that the relationship “goes far beyond the historical sponsorship of the championship, with which we have been linked for 10 years and which helps us to continue in the strategy of promoting the sport as an inclusive tool for society and that helps sports and cultural organizations and institutions to develop projects that can help social and economic progress, in line with the values of the entity”.

This afternoon’s presentation also featured speeches by Jordi Masquef, diputat d’Esports de la Diputació de Girona; Juanjo Rovira, MICFootball’s director, and Jaume Masana, CaixaBank’s territorial director in Catalonia. Sports journalist Gerard Romero led the event.

Juanjo Rovira explains that “we come back with the utmost enthusiasm, desire and strength. We haven’t been able to do it for two years and after all that has happened, we will have 300 teams from 30 countries, a figure we would have accepted without a second thought three months ago. We will adapt to the current situation to get as close as possible to what the tournament was before the pandemic”. Rovira, who thanked the support of institutions, administrations, sponsors, and collaborators, emphasizes that “we are looking forward to seeing how big and small teams live together and discover football promises. We are ready to celebrate, as always, the best MIC in history”.

Jordi Masquef underlined that “we all really want MIC after two years without being able to celebrate it due to the pandemic. This year, a total of 33 Girona municipalities will be the scene of the tournament, which is an excellent platform for the international projection of these municipalities and, at the same time, allows us to further promote our territory as a sports tourism destination”.

Jaume Masana accentuated CaixaBank’s commitment to the territory, in this case in the Girona region, in an event such as MICFootball. In addition, Masana thanked the work of CaixaBank volunteers: “We are very proud of their contribution to the tournament by actively collaborating with the organization, accompanying the participants, supporting them and giving everything operational support”.

Elite footballers, an impact of 11.5 MEUR and future journalists with the Dani Montesinos Award

MICFootball has proven to be a real cradle of footballers in the 19 editions that have been played. A wide range of elite players has played it, like Leo Messi, Neymar, Ansu Fati, Carvajal, Casemiro, Marcus Rashford, Joao Felix, Mohamed Salah, Pedri, Dani Olmo, Theo Hernandez, Brahim Diaz, Eric Garcia, Gavi, Nico González, Coutinho, Pau Torres, Sergio Reguilón, Pablo Fornals, Piqué, Marcelo and Juan Mata, among others.

The tournament, which this year again has the Girona Provincial Council and CaixaBank as its main partners, mobilizes 400 volunteers and improves the position of the Costa Brava as a destination for sports tourism and projects it internationally. According to the MIC – Mediterranean International Cup 2018 Economic Impact Study commissioned by the Costa Brava Girona Tourism Board, the 2018 MICFootball generated a return in the territory of more than 11.5 million euros with a budget of 2,8 MEUR. For every euro invested by the public administration, there was a return to the territory of more than 100 euros.

The values that MICFootball tries to convey are also reflected in the Dani Montesinos Sports Journalism Award, with the aim of remembering the figure of the journalist and with the objective of promoting sports journalism and young journalists. The award, promoted by MICSports in collaboration with Mediapro, will recognize for the 10th year a work written by a journalism student, who will at the same time obtain an internship on the GOL Channel.

Once the draw has been made, we already have the groups for MICFootball 2022 that will be held from April 12 to 17 on the Costa Brava. 69 groups of 9 different categories.

In the following link you can watch again the draw we have made for each category: bit.ly/MICF22_Grupos

This is how MICFootball 2022 groups look like:

U20

F20

U18

U16

U15

U14

U13

U12A

U12B

Would you like to have a personalized FIFA card with your photo and all your data?

We have reached an agreement with FutCards so that all participants, as well as any interested people, can get their personalized MICFootball card.

The best possible memory of an unforgettable experience at the Costa Brava.

What do you have to do to get it?

Go to bit.ly/MICFUTCards2022 and edit your information:

Size (A4, A3, A2 or A1).
Your name
Your position
Your nationality/country
Your stats
Order it

IMPORTANT

If you want to receive the personalized Futcard during MICFootball in PVC format: order it before April 6, 2022 without indicating the delivery address. Once you have made the order, you will not have to enter your address, as you will receive it at your hotel on the Costa Brava.
- If you do not want to receive it at the tournament and you prefer it to arrive earlier, then indicate your address.

If you want the personalized one in digital format: you can order it whenever you want and it will arrive at your email.

The best materials, your best memory. Order it now and get your personalized MIC Futcard!

MICFootball 2022, which will be held at the Costa Brava from April 12 to 17, will feature 10 LaLiga teams. That is exactly half of the teams in the entire Spanish league.

The 10 First Division teams that will play the championship during Holy Week are: Barça, Madrid, Atlético, Villarreal, Sevilla, Real Sociedad, Valencia, Athletic, Betis and Espanyol.

Barça is the most successful team in the tournament (16), while Espanyol (13) and Madrid (10) will seek to add trophies in this edition.

Real Sociedad will debut as a team in the tournament. The people of San Sebastian will play MICFootball for the first time, something that makes us very excited. It is one of the fashionable clubs in national football and with a very well-worked academy.

The draw of the groups, soon

The draw for the MICFootball 2022 groups will take place soon. As usual, it will be featured in our YouTube channel.

Real Sociedad will be part of MICFootball 2022, which will take place from April 12 to 17 on the Costa Brava.

It is a great honor to have in the tournament one of the clubs that works best in the lower categories in Spain. The Donostiarra are also one of the fashionable teams displaying an attractive and vertical football.

In the current Real Sociedad there is only one player with a past in the MIC. He is Robert Navarro, a young midfielder trained in FC Barcelona. The Catalan played three times in the MICFootball (2014, 2016 and 2018).

Here you can check the complete list of confirmed teams in MICFootball 2022.