mtu-Cup

Dear players, football friends and fans,
honoured guests,

It's mtu-Cup time again in Friedrichshafen. After last year's successful premiere, the young German and international footballers and fans can once again look forward to a weekend full of football, international opponents and fun.

Football is still the most important sport in Friedrichshafen - as it is in Germany. No other sport captivates so many fans, no other exerts such a fascination. And especially in the year leading up to the European Football Championship in Germany, interest in football is growing.

Football depends on every single player. Because only with team spirit, fairness and cohesion can victory in the game and in the tournament be achieved. But it is also important that, despite all the ambition, the fun and enjoyment of the game are not neglected. That's why I hope that the young players will have the time to go to the beautiful shores of Lake Constance and visit the Lake Constance Christmas in the run-up to Christmas.

A tournament like the mtu-Cup needs a lot of preparation. I would like to thank VfB Friedrichshafen for once again managing to bring the youth teams of renowned international football clubs to Friedrichshafen. The teams come back every year because they feel at home at the mtu-Cup. It is therefore a very special honour and recognition for all those who have spent many months planning this tournament on a voluntary basis.

I am sure that this year's mtu-Cup will once again be an unforgettable experience for players and fans alike. I wish the young footballers, all visitors and VfB Friedrichshafen a successful, fair and exciting tournament.

Sincerely,
Andreas Brand

Dear friends of football,

On behalf of the DFB, I would like to welcome you all to the mtu-Cup organised by VfB Friedrichshafen in Exhibition Hall A1. I wish the international guests a wonderful time here in Germany, and I wish all the participants and the organisers a lot of fun and every success.

The mtu-Cup is being held for the 19th time, this long distance is a remarkable achievement of which the club can be very proud. Just like the reputation and status that the tournament has earned. In two decades, the event has developed into one of the most prestigious tournaments for young players in Europe, with players raving about the fantastic conditions and great atmosphere for which the tournament is known in Germany, Europe and around the world. Just as they do for the sporting level, which is unrivalled. And that's not all. In the U division, the mtu-Cup sets the standards by which other tournaments are judged.

A look at the gallery of ancestors shows how much quality is regularly assembled in Friedrichshafen, and a look at the current field of participants confirms this. FC Bayern, Borussia Dortmund, RB Leipzig, VfB Stuttgart, Eintracht Frankfurt and Mainz 05 all face renowned competition from abroad. For example from FC Barcelona and Manchester United, Chelsea FC and Sporting Lisbon. Basically, there is hardly a top club that does not send its youngsters to Friedrichshafen. This year, too, it will be exciting to see how the teams from the region, which round off the field of participants, perform.

Dear organisers, it is impressive what you put together year after year. I would like to thank everyone involved in running and organising the tournament. With great enthusiasm, expertise and incredible commitment, you ensure that others can play football in perfect conditions and compete with the best from all over Europe. I know the effort you put in and I also know that you don't always get the recognition you deserve. What you do is really great, my compliments and recognition!

The mtu-Cup will be an example of what we are planning to do throughout Germany in 2024. In six months' time, Germany and the DFB will be organising a European Football Championship for the second time. Then we don't just want to be the perfect host once again and organise a carefree football festival. It is our declared aim that football at grassroots level in particular should also benefit from this European Championship, our more than 24,000 clubs throughout the country, which achieve so many great things on a small scale. Clubs like VfB Friedrichshafen.

I send you my warmest regards and wish you a wonderful Christmas season.

Sincerely,
Bern Neuendorf

Dear spectators,

On behalf of the football department of VfB Friedrichshafen e.V., we would like to welcome you to the 19th edition of our mtu-Cup. As last year, the world's best-attended U15 indoor tournament will be held in the A1 exhibition hall in Friedrichshafen, an environment that we like to get used to and that has a lot to offer you, dear spectators.

Our thanks go to the city of Friedrichshafen and its local council led by Mayor Andreas Brand, without whose active support the tournament would not be possible this year. In the same breath, we would also like to mention the Friedrichshafen Exhibition Centre, where we already felt very comfortable last year. As usual, tournament organiser Klaus Segelbacher was able to attract the best youth teams to the mtu-Cup. Chapeau !

For an event on the scale of the mtu-Cup to be possible, it needs the generous support of sponsors. Rolls-Royce Power Systems with its product brand mtu should be emphasised here. A warm welcome to all mtu employees who have found their way to the exhibition hall. The names of the other sponsors can be found in the tournament booklet and in various advertising campaigns in and around the exhibition hall. Please consider our advertising partners when making future purchases.

We would like to take this opportunity to emphasise the many volunteers in our football department. Many of our members have been working tirelessly over the last few days and during the tournament to make the tournament what you are experiencing on site. Volunteers are usually invisible to the visitor, but for us as the department management they are an essential part of it. Many thanks, dear VfB fans.

It now remains for us to wish the mtu-Cup 2023 an exciting and fair event. Don't be sparing with your applause when it comes to applauding the young ball artists for their successful actions. We wish all participants every sporting success and unforgettable moments in Exhibition Hall A1 in Friedrichshafen.

Sportingly yours,

Andreas Müller-Hirlinger | Klaus Segelbacher | Dragan Novakovic

Dear soccer fans, visitors, players, coaches and helpers,

Welcome to the mtu Cup 2023!

What an atmosphere! When I was able to experience the atmosphere at the mtu Cup for the first time last year, I was immediately thrilled. The breathtaking tension when it came to deciding which team would win the final match, a packed grandstand with excited spectators whose hearts beat for soccer and young people - the atmosphere in the hall was fantastic!

I am delighted to see how much passion the young talents here at the mtu Cup show on the pitch. The youngsters are our future. In a few years' time, they will be the key players in our society - and we have a responsibility to support them. Be it by supporting the mtu Performance Center in sport, in the Wissenswerkstatt Friedrichshafen e.V. for MINT or with our apprenticeships, where 220 young people are currently starting their professional careers.

It is clear to me that, as the main sponsor and namesake of the mtu Cup, we have a committed, reliable and innovative partner at our side in the tournament organizer VfB Friedrichshafen e.V., who is facing up to the challenges of our time. This is reflected not least in the professional restructuring of the club that has taken place this year. Building on this, we have intensified and expanded our partnership with VfB. Because we know that Clubs are an essential pillar for society and health. In order to sustainably strengthen young people and the associated infrastructure, continuous and reliable investments must therefore be made.

The club members of the soccer department of VfB Friedrichshafen e.V. are also key players. Without the commitment of numerous tireless volunteers, it would hardly be possible to put on an event like the mtu Cup, which has long been known throughout Europe. A big thank you to all VfB members - especially the main organizer Klaus Segelbacher!

I am sure that the atmosphere will be fantastic again this year. Dear soccer fans, I wish us two fascinating tournament days, fair matches, breathtaking goals and lots of fun at the mtu Cup 2023!

Yours

Jörg Stratmann