Pro Nation Sports Director Gregory Jones says improving the lives of players and coaches was crucial in continuing the Grace Mighty Malt Victory Cup, said to be the largest youth football tournament in the Caribbean.

The annual two-day tournament is scheduled for Saturday and Sunday at the Kingston Polo Club in St Catherine where over 80 teams are expected to compete, ranging from under-7 to under-16 age categories.

Aside from the championship titles, the organisers are to hand out five scholarships valued at $50,000 to student athletes in need as well as sponsoring a handful of coaches to participate in the Concacaf D licence course.

Jones believes these initiatives will not only help to improve the sport locally but create more holistic individuals.

“I think a lot of the kids who are playing are not just from uptown. We have a wide cross section of kids from the inner city, quite a number of the clubs have said it’s difficult for our kids and we want to encourage the kids to do well in school and stay in school, so to offer these scholarships is giving back and our way of saying we believe in education as much as we believe in football. We wish we could give more scholarships to the players, we wish we could give 10 but for now we’ll start with that,” he said.

“We also believe in coaching education because if the coaches are doing well, the teams and players will do well, so we need to educate the coaches as much as the players. It’s a no-brainer for us to have the coaches certified, have them continue their education because it only helps the academies, the coaches and the players,” Jones added.

With an increase in sponsorship, including from title sponsor Grace, Jones declared the Victory Cup could become one of the best youth tournaments in the world.

“I think that corporate Jamaica is now buying into what we’re doing and we’re trying to continue to build on a solid foundation that we’ve built over the years. The tournament is growing, so much that teams from abroad want to travel to Jamaica to play, so this year we’re trying to lift the standard and maintain the prestige that we bring but more so to lift the standards to international standards,” said Jones.

Grace Foods Brand Manager Kristina Hill says the company is looking forward to the Victory Cup.

“As part of the Grace Foods family, Mighty Malt is committed to youth and sports development and we’re pleased to be a partner in this vital football competition. For the past 15 years, Pro Nation Sports has championed for young footballers, providing them with a platform to excel especially at the grass roots level and this year marks an exciting collaboration as we join forces to support the Victory Cup,” she said.

The tournament is set to kick off at 8:00 am on both days.