Former World Cup winner Youri Djorkaeff to teach Dominican children soccer

RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL – Former French soccer player Youri Djorkaeff, World Cup winner with France in 1998 and European champion in 2000, will lead a group of international and Dominican coaches who will offer training to more than 100 children through the Campus Program in the city of Santiago.

The training will be held from August 14 to 22 by the FIFA Foundation under the direction of the former French footballer with the support of the Dominican government and the Dominican Football Federation, the latter announced in a statement on Thursday.

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The children of both sexes chosen are natives of the Santiago community of La Canela, who, in addition to the knowledge about football, will have access to sessions of social awareness, artistic expression, planting gardens, entertainment, and cultural excursions.

The sessions will be held at the Cibao FC stadium located at the headquarters of the Pontificia Universidad Católica Madre y Maestra, in Santiago.

The FIFA Foundation develops this program worldwide with the support of FIFA member federations and non-governmental organizations. The foundation is committed to making a positive social change, mobilizing soccer to contribute to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, the information highlighted.

This is the first time the Campus Program will be implemented in the Americas and the second time globally, after its premiere last May in Armenia.

Djorkaeff made his professional debut in his country in 1984 and retired in 2006 in the United States Soccer League.

He made 82 appearances for France and won the European Cup Winners’ Cup with Paris Saint-Germain in 1996, before winning the UEFA Cup with Inter Milan two years later.