Football tournament to launch the Accommodation and care for unaccompanied minors project

Three teams competed in the tournament: a team of unaccompanied minors, whose members are accommodated in Postojna, a team of the refugee national team of Slovenia, which operates under the auspices of the Football Association of Slovenia, and the home team NK Proteus Postojna. The tournament was played in a triangular format, where everyone plays everyone, and the format was 6+1, i.e. seven players (with a goalkeeper), on a small grass pitch with two five-metre goals. The first match was played between the home team, NK Proteus, and a team of underage migrants without parents. Underage migrants won 1:0. The winners were then pitted against the Slovenian refugee team, who will represent Slovenia at this year’s third Unity Euro Cup 2024, organised by the European Football Association (UEFA) and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). 16 countries will participate in the European Championship for refugee teams; Slovenia will participate for the first time this year. The unaccompanied minors also won the second match (2:0), meaning the refugee national team still has a bright future. When the unaccompanied minors come of age (and if they acquire refugee status), they can strengthen the ranks of the national team. In the third and last match (two 15 minutes), the Football Association of Slovenia Refugee Team and NK Proteus Postojna played each other, with the Refugee Team winning. The tournament was a great opportunity for them to prepare for the European Refugee Championship, which will take place on 10 October in Nyon, Switzerland, where UEFA is based. Each team received a trophy according to their ranking, and each member of the football team received a commemorative T-shirt to remind them of the great sporting event. They parted in a spirit of friendship, promising to compete again next year in a football match that could become a tradition in Postojna under the slogan “With sport for tolerance”.