This past weekend we were united in fun. Really. Every year the COPA Benelux - an indoor soccer tournament for teams from around Belgium and the Netherlands - is organized. In Maastricht we try to form a team to play, but the last few years this has not been possible. So this year three of us from Maastricht joined three from Gent and one from Haarlem to form a team. We are FUN United.
You see, the teams are split up in Pro and Fun. The Pro teams are serious. They usually have people who know how to play, are basically fit and are serious about winning - although they are also there to have fun. Christians know how to have fun. God made fun. The other teams, made up mostly of kids (at least 10 years old), people who don’t know that much about soccer and older people make up the Fun teams.
This year there were only 3 fun teams and 7 pro teams. But the fun teams definitely had fun. Our team did not win any games, although we made some of them fairly exciting. Still, we got third place. (This is where one would put an emoji sticking his cheeky tongue out). It was fun to play although my body definitely feels it still, two days later. We had some beautiful goals and plenty of screaming to root one another one.
In between matches I always enjoy meeting new people and checking in with people we do not get to see very often. There were some players from Antwerp that we only see during this tournament. And it was good to check in with them. One of the other Fun teams was from Den Haag. As a matter of fact, last year I won the Fun tournament as part of their team. This year they also won in a thrilling final that only ended after penalty shootouts.
I am always thankful for people around the country who make the effort to put something like this together. This is a place where young people can get together. It is a time when older people can connect with younger people in a different way. It is a moment when everyone sees that perseverance and fairness are part of having fun. It was great, nearing the end of the day, when we all gathered to sing praises to God and hear a pep talk. Like Luk Brazle always mentions - soccer and singing go together. We love singing to God who gives us such fun moments.
The photo is of FUN United. You can find more photos of the day here.
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