Following its highly successful debut in Jeddah, the Pepsi Footvolley Festival moved on to Riyadh, where on May 29 a big number of enthusiastic football fans surged into Al Malaz indoor stadium to enjoy the newest game in the world of competitive sports.
The event kicked-off with top players from Brazil and the UK competing against Saudi football stars, Naif Al Hazazi and Yousef Al Mouainea in two-a-side matches that gave the spectators a professional display of the new game’s combination of football and volleyball skills.
The Jeddah event took place on May 21st and the winning team members of the competition were team 1: Saeed Mastoor Al Harthi & Fahad Mohammad Al Gharni and team 2: Basil Ahmad Firaq & Mohannad Ahmed Al Hamdani. While the Riyadh event took place on May 29th and the competition winners are team 1: Abdullah Al Kaf and Mohammed Al Shouaikher and team 2: Faisal Bakarbashat and Mohammed Al Mouaizri.
This was followed by competition challenge matches in which talented young football players, selected from the thousands who logged onto www.pepsiarabia.com and registered for the chance to compete and be one of the lucky winners who will go on a dream trip to the UK where they will meet Pepsi Football Stars, and will also visit Chelsea Football Club.
The festival witnessed the participation of Saudi Football Stars: Naif Al Hazazi, Ibrahim Al Hazazi and Yousef Al Mouainea in both Jeddah & Riyadh. “We congratulate the players whose skills have won them the prize of a trip that all young football players dream of, the trip to meet Pepsi Football stars in London” said Ibrahim Zeinelabdin, Brand Manager at PepsiCo International. “They will have a wonderful time enjoying an exciting agenda that includes the thrill of meeting their football role models in person.”
He went to say: “The keenness of Saudi youth to take up footvolley is obvious from the record attendance at the events in Jeddah and Riyadh, along with the huge number of registrations, which far exceeded our expectations, and we are confident that footvolley will become a highly popular sport in the Kingdom.”
Footvolley is played on an 18 × 9 meters sand court with a 1.98 meters high net. Points are calculated according to volleyball rules and are scored each time the ball hits the ground, when the opponent fails to return the ball, or when a rule is broken.
The game allows players to head and chest the ball as in football rules and combines the rules of volleyball in terms of dimensions and descriptions of the playing field - but with an important twist - no hands!
About PepsiCo International
PepsiCo International is one of the world’s premier consumer products companies focused on convenience foods and beverages. With a presence in the GCC dating back more than 50 years, PepsiCo today operates through a network of ten local bottlers, producing and marketing products which include Pepsi Cola, Mirinda, 7UP, Mountain Dew, Tropicana, Aquafina and Bario.
