The Emotions of the 28th Manlio Selis World Tournament – Sardegna Cup

The players from Ukraine take the field with their national flag draped over their shoulders. Flamengo puts on a show, and images of Sardinia travel around the world.

A powerful image — incredibly powerful — was gifted to us by the young Ukrainian players of Lokomotyv Kyїv. Seeing boys who come from a war-torn region step onto the field with their country's flag on their backs speaks louder than words about what the Manlio Selis Tournament truly represents: not just an international showcase of talent, not only a competition of the highest technical level, but a place suspended in time — where the only bombs are the ones aimed at the net.

It’s a social message, like many the Tournament has delivered over the years. But it’s also the lightness of a sport that, as this year’s campaign reminds us — “It’s only football” — is meant to bring joy, especially at this age. And that’s something the boys from Flamengo know very well. The Brazilian team impressed scouts and observers right from the first matches.

These young talents are followed by local media outlets with thousands of subscribers, who have used this opportunity to showcase the island and the places visited. Another beautiful spotlight on Sardinia, flying across the ocean to reach the other side of the world.

Another key moment of this edition will take place on June 1st in Budoni at 4:45 PM, when the field will host a special match featuring young players from the "100% UGI Torino" team — made up of pediatric cancer survivors from the Regina Margherita Hospital in Turin — together with patients from the pediatric hematology-oncology departments of Santa Chiara Hospital in Pisa and Armando Businco Hospital in Cagliari.

An incredible experience for many young people who have fought bravely and now find in football a way to reclaim their lives. This initiative, strongly desired by Enea Selis, follows the path of past SOCIAL GOL events — like the Israeli-Palestinian team in 2022 and the Ukrainian refugee team in 2023.