Once again this year, the pre-season training camps and summer tournaments fill the SIA Academy with top-level teams. In this case, during the COTIF, the famous tournament that celebrates its XXXVIII edition in L’Alcudia, it has been the Argentina Women’s National Team that has settled in the SIA Center to rest between each match..
An Argentina team that comes with its U-20 players and is the sensation of the tournament. They have won all their matches in this first phase and are awaiting their opponents in the semi-finals. On non-match days, the Albiceleste go through their daily routine at the Soccer Inter-Action facilities. They train, eat, sleep, work out in the gym or enjoy the surroundings to prepare for the next match.
Strategic location for football team stays
Due to its natural surroundings and first class facilities, SIA Academy is one of the best options for a football training camp in Spain. Many teams do not know where to prepare for the season each summer. They have doubts about the quality of the pitches, the climate or the food service they will receive. The place to stay during pre-season periods and tournament days is key for teams and SIA Academy highlights the main characteristics they are looking for.
There are examples such as Real Madrid, FC Barcelona or Atlético de Madrid that choose these high performance facilities every time they have an engagement in the Valencian Community. They have a personalised and specific attention for football teams, which allows them to differentiate themselves. A natural grass pitch and an artificial turf pitch. Gymnasium and physiotherapy clinic. Video analysis room and spacious common areas, as well as a catering service that follows the guidelines of each team.
Argentina National Team training sessions at SIA Academy
The Argentina Women’s National Team feels at home here. They have a facility just for them, with rooms with direct access to the football pitch. The coach of the Albiceleste, Christian Meloni, has all the resources at his disposal for training in preparation for each match. The players follow a routine of meals and gymnastics to complement the work on the pitch.
The facilities are of a high standard and this is shown by the squad. Players such as Valentina Ahumada (All Boys), Kishi Núñez (Argentinos Jrs.), Estefanía Palomar (Boca Juniors), Lola Ruffini (Estudiantes Bs. As), Valentina Tesio (Gimnasia LP), Gisela Alves (Independiente), Yuliana Sanabria (Platense), Giuliana González (River Plate) and Anela Nigito (Bakersfiled University, USA) are in this training camp. A great competitive team in a high performance facility.
Tribute to Maradona at COTIF
This year, with the presence of the Argentina national team, the organisers of the COTIF International Football Tournament wanted to pay tribute to the figure of Diego Armando Maradona. A statue has been made, as well as a giant T-shirt and a photograph to be placed at the entrance to the Els Arcs pitch.
Claudio ‘Chiqui’ Tapia, president of the Argentine Football Association (AFA), Omar Souto, secretary of the AFA, and Javier Mascherano, former FC Barcelona player and current Argentina U-20 coach, were present at the tribute. Eliseu Gómez, president of COTIF, and Salva Gomar, president of the Valencian Federation and vice-president of the Spanish Football Federation, were also present.
What is COTIF 2022?
The COTIF is an international U-20 football tournament held in L’Alcúdia, Valencia. It has a great international impact, being one of the most important tournaments in this category, except for the official RFEF, UEFA or FIFA tournaments. Both clubs and national teams take part and its origins date back to 1983. It was when the football team CE L’Alcúdia took part in an international tournament in the French city of Bollène, where different teams from all over Europe took part. After this event, the representatives of the club decided to organise a very similar tournament and the following year they started it up.
With great teams since its beginnings, the level of the tournament has increased every year. Valencia CF, FC Barcelona, SC Corinthians and the national teams of Brazil, Chile, Argentina and Morocco are examples of COTIF winning teams. In each edition, and for more than 30 years now, an average of 7,000 spectators have attended the tournament.
Which teams are participating in COTIF 2022?
In the 2022 edition of the COTIF, the participating men’s teams were Argentina, Uruguay, Villarreal CF, FC Rukh of Ukraine, Valencia CF, Levante UD, UD Alzira and UD Alboraya. UD Alboraya replaced the Brazilian team Uniao Bandeirantes at the last minute.
Meanwhile, in the women’s category of the COTIF, the participating teams are Argentina, Villarreal CF, Elche CF, Mislata CF, UD Alzira and SPA Alicante.
COTIF Promises 2022
Following the success of the COTIF, a tournament has also been developed for the lower categories. The COTIF Promeses brings together the best schools in the area plus teams of great relevance such as Sevilla FC, Levante UD and Valencia CF. These teams participate in categories of alevín, benjamín and prebenjamín..
An example of schools participating in this edition are: CDB SIA Massanassa, UD Alzira, SIA Academy Enguera, E-1 Valencia, CD Acero, CF Gandía or CD Malilla. In the last edition, CDB SIA Massanassa was proclaimed champion in the benjamín category with a great tournament. This was a sign of the growth that the school managed by SIA Academy was going to experience a year later and the progress that it is going to have year after year.
