Five under 15 football teams from four football academies are getting ready to travel and take part in an international football tournament, “Manchester International Independence Cup 2018”. Teams includes three teams from football academies based in capital Male’ and two teams from one sports school in Hulhumale'

Total 16 teams will be taking part in the tournament. Six teams from Maldives, one team from India and nine teams from Sri Lanka.

From Maldives, Early Touch Football Academy (ETFA), Maldives Soccer Mates Academy (MSM), Maziya Football Academy, (one more team), and two Hulhumale’ Sports School (HSS) will be traveling to take part in the very first tournament of its kind held in Sri Lanka. One team from each academy while two teams from HSS will be taking part in.

This tournament is aimed for under 15 age boy players and will be held in Sri Lanka from 24^th to 25^th March.

Tournament is held to mark and celebrate 70^th anniversary of Independence of Sri Lanka and also to mark the 1^st anniversary of the tournament organizer, Manchester Soccer Academy –Sri Lanka. Hulhumale’ Sports School is the local coordinator in Maldives for the event.  It is not the first time that Hulhumale’ Sports Schools has taken initiate or to help in to organize an international tournament. Last year, in November, in capital Male’, there was an international under 14 football tournament held by Club Maldives along with Milo as main sponsor and Hulhumale’ Sports School as coordinator.  On the other hand Manchester Soccer Academy from Sri Lanka also visited and took part in the same tournament while teams from India and local football academies also took part and shared the experiences during last year's tournament, which was the very first tournament of its kind in Maldives too.

Teams from Maldives has already began the preparations towards the tournament back in last month. Other than training to get ready to the away tournament participants from Maldives is continuously playing numbers of friendly games among the academies and with Maldives women national football team also.