Nnauye at Airtel Rising Stars

All is set for the launch of the U-17 football talent scouting tournament known Airtel Rising Stars in the city this Sunday.

The sixth edition of the youth soccer talent show comes under the umbrella of another youth empowering initiative dubbed Fursa.

The launch ceremony will be held at Airtel Tanzania Headquarters on June 26 and the Minister for Information, Culture, Arts and Sports, Nape Nnauye will be the event’s guest of honour.

The launch will be also attended by numerous football stakeholders including coaches, officials of clubs, football administrators, former Airtel Rising Stars players and the media, according to Airtel Tanzania’s Public Relations Manager Jackson Mmbando He said for the past five years, Airtel Rising Stars programme has brought to light hundreds of talented girls and boys across the country and Africa as a whole.

Season six of Airtel Rising Stars is once again set to provide a life time opportunity for youth to showcase their talent and realize their dreams. According to a calendar issued by the Tanzania Football Federation (TFF), the tournament will get underway at the grassroots from July 23rd to August 28th and culminate into the national finals to be held in Dar es Salaam from 6th to 11th September.

This year tournament will draw participants from Mwanza, Morogoro, Mbeya, Temeke, Ilala and Morogoro regions in boys’ category while Ilala, Kinondoni, Temeke, Arusha, Lindi and Zanzibar will take part in girls’ category.

“We look back with pride and satisfaction as players realised from this programme are now making great contribution in various teams, ranging from clubs to national teams”, said Mmbando.

Since its inception in 2011, Airtel Rising Stars has touched the lives of thousands of budding football players, giving them the opportunity to realise their potential. The ongoing Airtel FURSA campaign was launched in the country last year and is aimed at empowering youth by providing them with various enabling opportunities.

“Airtel Rising Stars constitute part of these initiatives as its ultimate objective is empowering and transforming the lives of the youth who are passionate about football,” said Mmbando.

Last year, Airtel was involved in a campaign dubbed ‘It’s Now’ which sought to nurture and grow talent in Africa through various consumer touch points such as sports, lifestyle and music while providing customers with access to connectivity and technological solutions that enabled them explore opportunities around them.

The campaign was spearheaded by Ivory Coast’s captain and Manchester City’s prolific midfield Yaya Toure.