MAYRA SEMEDO – AFRICA YOUTH CUP MVP MOVES TO SPAIN
The 2023 second edition of Africa Youth Cup held in Cabo Verde was quite significant and a redefining moment for some of the players that participated in the tournament.
This was a tournament that threw up players such as Mayra Semedo, a player from Derby of Mali and another from Diambars Abidjan who were identified by one of the tournament’s scouts, Ravi
Daswani of RD Global Sports who spotted the soccer skills and potentials in the duo and recommended them for trials in Spain.
Africa Youth Cup organisers are excited to announce the arrival in Spain of the 2023 Most Valuable Player (MVP) in the maiden edition of the female category of the tournament. Mayra Semedo popularly called (THAIS) of Delta FC – Praia, Cabo Verde. She is presently undergoing trials with a renowned Spanish club side.
Another player in the male category from DIAMBARS of Abidjan Cote d’Ivoire has completed embassy appointment and is awaiting visa to move to Spain.
The female category of Africa Youth Cup is designed to support CAF and FIFA in their quest to develop female football in Africa at the grassroots.
In order to achieve the cardinal objective of the Africa Youth Cup, which is to promote and advance football academies in Africa and further provide offshore soccer career opportunities to players with exceptional talents, we set out to partner with some of the best scouting agencies in Europe. Ravi Daswani of RD Global Sports and other partner agencies were in Cape
Verde to identify exceptional talents for offshore soccer career opportunities during the Africa Youth Cup International Football Tournament.
We are further humbled and grateful for the support of the foremost international refereeing global network, Referee Abroad and APAF, the Portuguese Referee Association.
Arbiters is one of the unique selling points of the tournament.
Africa Youth Cup is a tournament of opportunities for football academies in Africa as players in the 2019 maiden edition from Deportivo Football Academy of Cote d’Ivoire, Sotavento of Cabo Verde, and Bayelsa Starlets of Nigeria are now playing professional football in Spain, Portugal, and Serbia respectively. Luis Semedo, a player from Benfica Football Academy in the 2019 edition also graduated to the Benfica senior team. We are proud of the coach of the winners of the maiden edition Volcan Junior Académie of Cote D’ Ivoire, Felix Kouadjo who was part of the coaching crew of the Ivorian national team that won the just concluded AFCON in Côte d’Ivoire.
