A team from a disadvantaged, sports-rich area takes home the silver medal of the Singa Cup 2025
KARACHI:
The Lyari Football Academy team received a hero’s welcome upon their return to Karachi after clinching the silver medal in the Singa Cup 2025, Asia’s largest youth football tournament.
The young footballers, hailing from the deprived but sports-rich area of Lyari, were welcomed with garlands, rose petals and chants of “Pakistan Zindabad” as they arrived at Karachi’s international airport.
Sindh Assembly Member Muhammad Farooq was present to receive the team. He congratulated the players for their outstanding performance and said that they had made not only Lyari but the entire nation proud. “These young athletes have shown that passion and determination can overcome all obstacles,” he said, acknowledging the team’s success despite financial and resource limitations.
Lyari Football Academy President Sheikh Abdul Rehman vowed to continue developing young football talents and urged the Sindh government and Provincial Sports Minister Sardar Muhammad Bakhsh Mehr to provide financial and institutional support to the players. He said that with proper facilities and encouragement, Lyari footballers could achieve even greater successes at the international level. Among those present to welcome the team were Sufyan Dilawar, Syed Jawad Shoaib, Jan Muhammad Baloch and Zohaib Hussain Baloch.
Lyari Football Academy clinched the silver medal as runners-up in the U-16 boys category at the Singa Cup football tournament in Singapore.
