The stage is set for the National Final of the Danone Nations Cup

The big under-12s football event is set to take place on 20, 21 and 22 May in Barcelona: the National Final of the Danone Nations Cup. The very best of Spain's young football talent will be represented by 16 teams who will take each other on over the course of 44 games at the Dani Jarque training ground and the RCDE Stadium to decide who will represent Spain in the World Final of the tournament in Paris in October, following in the footsteps of UE Cornella last year in Morocco. 

Furthermore, Sunday's games will be graced by the presence of a very special guest, with the Liga BBVA ambassador Fernando Morientes set to accompany the group of over 250 boys and girls taking part in the competition. The installations of RCD Espanyol's Dani Jarque training complex will host the qualifying stage on 21 May, and the final stage will be held at the RCDE Stadium on Sunday 22 May. All of the activities will be open to the public at no charge.

With 40,000 boys and girls from around Spain having taken part in the preliminary and regional stages of the tournament, this weekend over 250 of them will become the stars of the show at this football festival which brings together sport, fair play and healthy living habits. In addition to the sporting action, the organisers are planning to hold a range of activities aimed at promoting respect, hard work and team spirit among the children. Fair play is one of the pillars of the tournament, both at the national and international levels, and is one of the areas that receives most attention and is most valued. So much so, that during the regional stages, as well as at the National Final, the organisers present the Fair Play Award to one of the participating teams to promote and reward good conduct both on and off the pitch. 

Each year, the Danone Nations Cup (DNC) unites over 2.5 million boys and girls from over 30 countries spread across the five continents. In total, over 11,000 clubs and 34,000 schools from around the world take part in the tournament. In Spain, it brings together some 40,000 boys and girls between 10 and 12 years of age. The DNC is not just the largest under-12s football festival, it is also an opportunity for young players from across the globe to partake in a unique experience and feel the excitement of contesting an international tournament. One of its main objectives is to use football as an educational tool for promoting healthy living habits and the values associated with sport, such as camaraderie, respect, hard work and fair play.