FIFA President To Open Phuket Football Center

[george]

FIFA president to open Phuket football center

FIFA President Joseph 'Sepp' Blatter.

PHUKET: -- FIFA President Joseph ‘Sepp’ Blatter is set to visit Phuket next month as part of a whistle-stop three-day visit to Thailand.

Mr Blatter will travel to Phuket on September 15 to participate in the grand opening ceremony of the Tsunami Memorial Football Center with Phuket Governor Wichai Phraisa-ngop.

Built at the Baan Ao Nam Bor School near Ao Makham, the center, which consists of two football pitches and three buildings, cost 35 million baht.

The sum was donated by FIFA’s Tsunami Task Force, which was established in the wake of the December 2004 disaster.

Following his stopover in Phuket, Mr Blatter will head to Bangkok, where he is scheduled to meet Prime Minister Abhisit Vejjajiva for dinner.

On September 16 Mr Blatter will attend the grand opening of an Astroturf pitch in the capital before visiting the new Thai Football Association headquarters.

Members of the Thai FA will hold a farewell party for Mr Blatter before he flies back to Switzerland later that night.

Mr Blatter is the eighth president of FIFA, having succeeded Brazilian Dr Joao Havelange in 1998.

-- Phuket Gazette 2009-08-28

[NBT TV Phuket]

VDO on http://thainews.prd.go.th/newsenglish/prev...hp?news_id=1232

or

Sepp Blatter, President of FIFA, the world governing body of football, is to revisit Phuket, to officially open the FIFA Tsunami training ground at Ban Ao Nam Bor, while an Andaman futsal tournament takes place later in Phuket.

The Football Association of Thailand (or FAT) president Worawi Makudi said the FIFA president will officially open the Tsunami Football Training Center at Ban Ao Nam Bor near Cape Panwa on Tuesday morning September 15th, following a visit he made 3 years ago to inaugurate the project funded by FIFA. Eam Thavornwongwong, from Kata Group of hotels informed Andaman News that Mr Blatter will also visit a new training pitch on Kata Group land inside Chao Fa Thani housing estate in Chalong. He will return to Bangkok in the afternoon to discuss Thailand's bids to host the Futsal World Championship and the FIFA Congress in 2012. Meanwhile ND Productions Company told Andaman News that Phuket will host the Andaman Futsal Championship between 17-20 September at Saphan Hin.

Andaman News NBT TV (VHF dial) at 8.30am broadcast to Phang Nga, Krabi & Phuket provinces, Friday 11th September 2009

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our report 6 April 2006:

On Wednesday morning 5 April, the well-known President of the Federation of International Football Association or FIFA, Sepp Blatter, and the Asian Football Confederation or AFC President Mr Mohammed Bin Hammam who is also their joint Tsunami Task Force chairman, came to Phuket perform an historic inauguration for a new football training & tsunami memorial centre as well as other valuable assistance for children affected by the tsunami, totally almost 30 million baht, as part of funding construction projects in six FIFA member associations affected by the tsunami: Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, Maldives, Sri Lanka and Thailand.

Mr Blatter and Mr Mohammed, together with the Worawi Makudi, the Secretary General of the Thai Football Association, and Tawatchai Sat-ja- kul, Thai national Team Manager & Vice Minister for Sports and Tourism, arrived at Ban AoNamBor Primary School, on the road to Cape Panwa in southern Phuket, to be welcomed by Phuket Governor Udomsak Uswarangkura, other dignitaries and a large crowd of students and residents from the nearby Muslim villagers.

Then they began a tour of the jungle land of 20 rai being cleared behind the school on the hillside, to build a full sized pitch and 2 changing room and clubhouse buildings, which will also provide accommodation and camping facilities for visiting students and special coaches, hopefully attracting star players or teams to also visit here in future.

They then sat down for welcome speeches, first by Mr Udomsak, who thanked FIFA and AFC for making a dream come true to build a football training centre here.

Mr Tawatchai spoke on how helpful this center would be for the future of Thai football, and it was not just due to the tsunami disaster.

Mr Mohammed then made an impassioned speech to stress how much FIFA and his AFC helped communities not just in Asian tsunami hit countries, especially for his fellow Muslim citizens, but the wider global community, in various aid and assistance programs under the banner of ’Football for Hope’:

Then Mr Blatter spoke saying it was a great privilege to come here, and gave a lot of credit for the tsunami assistance to Mr Mohammed, and stressed the football communities’ solidarity with all the tsunami countries: he mentioned how they are also helping a Thai woman footballer’s family, as she died in the tsunami.

He pointed out that the training centre would be high enough in the hills to also be a rescue centre.

Finally Mr Worawi thanked them for their valuable support in several ways to the local and Thai football community.

After the speeches, Mr Blatter presented the Phuket Governor a commemorative coin marking FIFA’s 100th anniversary and in also in recognition of HM the King’s 60th anniversary of His Accession to the throne, given with sympathy and acknowledgment of tsunami assistance.

After an exchange of more gifts and pennants, Mr Blatter gave a press conference, in which he detailed FIFA & AFC’s assistance to Thailand in particular, including $664,700 US Dollars for the training memorial centre, $25,000 dollars as help for the family of Thai footballer Petchpoonsap from Phang Nga, $48,200 for a new grass pitch at Karon stadium, $3,231 for 500 footballs, $1,800 for jerseys, and $1,500 for other equipment, totaling almost $750,000 dollars or almost 30 million baht.

This visit though was really about helping the lucky children of this region and as they posed with various groups of students here, who showed their appreciation and admiration to their VIP FIFA and AFC guests, they bid farewell, for now.

[NBT TV Phuket]

VDO on

Over 120 Phuket children, some of whom lost their parents in the 2004 Tsunami, were the special guests at a new football training facility that was officially opened by

Joseph Sepp Blatter, the Federation International Football Association or FIFA President and Worawi Makudi, the Football Association of Thailand President, last Tuesday 15 September.

The Tsunami Memorial Football Centre at Ban Ao Nam Bor School near Cape Panwa on the east coast of Phuket was the first project to be inaugurated in 2006 from a joint FIFA & Asian Football Confederation or AFC fund of 11 million dollars set up in the wake of the tsunami tragedy which caused widespread destruction along the coasts bordering the Indian Ocean.

Worawi made the 1st welcoming and thank you speech in front of the new clubhouse:

Then Paiboon Upattising, Chairman of the Phuket Provincial Administration Organisaation or PPAO, also spoke in Thai, promising to take good care of the new facility, so it is fully utilized and becomes a lasting legacy to Phuket.

Then Mr Blatter spoke to the appreciative assembled audience about how world football charity events, including a special match between superstar teams lead by Shevchenko and Ronaldinho, was used as a tool for social change, to express solidarity and hope for tsunami hit countries, which he had also expressed when he first came here 3 years ago.

Mr Blatter signed and presented commemorative footballs to several students of 10 local Phuket schools represented, as they will primarily benefit from these excellent facilities, but also children from southern provinces.

Then the formal opening was marked with a ribbon cutting moment

and the unveiling of a plaque inside, incidentally saying 'in the presence of the Phuket Governor' who did not appear.

The FIFA president & other VIPs then went walkabout onto the grass pitches, which needed more than expected work and funds to reduce subsidence and flooding during the construction period.

The Tsunami Memorial Football Centre in Phuket received 950,000 US Dollars or about 33 million baht towards the construction.

On the pitch, they posed for several photos with the lucky kids and

Mr Blatter also met with foreign tourist police volunteers in Phuket, who want to also raise funds for other football projects, along with their normal security duties.

The FIFA president also posed with members of the PPAO and Wichit Municipality who will manage the new facility,

on behalf of the kids and young players who will come to train or play here. There's no doubt young Thais have talents in football but lack the necessary facilities and guidance from experienced coaches to turn that talent into FIFA World Cup qualification. Thailand is currently ranked 115th in the world but the Thai FA still aim to be among the qualifying finalists of the World Cup (in Brazil) in 2014 when some of these kids may be old enough to play there.

We suggested Mr Blatter encourage the kids with a short kick around and he duly obliged, showing some of the skills he still has from his Swiss club playing days many years ago. Even if he is the most powerful man in world football, he still knows how to play the 'beautiful game' ... in a smart suit on ....a hot day.

The kids, all dressed in cooler 'football for hope' t-shirts, waved us off the pitch.

At a press conference afterwards, Mr Blatter also explained he was going to meet the Thai Prime Minister later that day to discuss Thailand's bids to host the Futsal World Championship and the FIFA Congress in 2012, which may bring delegates to Phuket;

Worawi also confirmed this Phuket facility would primarily be for children of tsunami hit provinces;

but this new pitch was already used for the Phuket International Soccer 7s tournament last year and again will host this year's tournament over the last 2 weekends in November, so fit expats here & in Asia can also enjoy FIFA's quality surface.

(TAPE STOPS HERE: I also asked if the Thai national team would come train here and if he has agreed on their new manager, tipped to be ex England & Man Utd captain Bryan Robson:

"..Yes & no.."

He also confirmed to us England's team would be invited to play a friendly in Thailand, hopefully with a stopover here:

Finally Mr Blatter told us of his hopes for the first World Cup to be held in South Africa next year:

"...everything is ready..."

Lets hope these youngsters who met Mr Blatter here will now get better chances to take Thailand to the FIFA World Cups in future. 'Chai Yo!')

Special Report for Andaman News NBT TV (VHF dial) at 8.30am & perhaps repeats on Phuket Cable TV channel 1 at 3.30pm, 7pm, 1.30am & 6.30am, broadcast to Phang Nga, Krabi & Phuket provinces & maybe Mazz Radio FM108 at 7pm in Phuket, Friday 18 September & http://thainews.prd.go.th/newsenglish/ & www.YouTube.com/AndamanNews