–Tournament officially commences March 8

ON Thursday, Massy, through their Nestle/Milo brand, again collaborated with the Petra Organisation to launch the 2025 installment of their famed school football championships, set to run off at the Ministry of Education Ground.

CEO of Massy Distribution Troy Beharry says their contribution is designed to ensure the holistic development of young footballers.
“Massy Guyana and Nestle, with the brand, Milo, are delighted to once again partner with the Petra Organisation and the Ministry of Education, in hosting the annual Milo secondary school U-18 football tournament,” Beharry said, adding:

“Over the past 10 years, this tournament has become a staple in the football calendar in Guyana.
“This tournament serves as a stepping stone to highlight the talent, and promote the youths for bigger things in football. And I know many of our national footballers would have come out of this tournament.”
According to Petra organiser and co-director Troy Mendonca, the youth will continue to have a platform once again, thanks to Massy Distributors.

“It’s a household name in the communities and the schools,” he said Thursday, adding: “I dwell in proximity to some schools, and ever since this tournament started, it has been a household name. Children look forward for this competition, and so we at Petra are very happy to be standing here again today to deliver the eleventh edition of the tournament.”
Mendonca promised the sponsors that Petra will continue to strive to maintain a high level of professionalism to ensure a well-organised tournament.

Head of the Ministry of Education’s Unit of Allied Arts Nicholas Fraser added, “This tournament forms part of a number of tournaments that the Petra Organisation has been organising over the last decade-and-a-half. And the Ministry of Education, for this period of time, has worked closely with this organization, and we have watched them grow from strength-to-strength, and we are very happy a company such as Massy will be partnering with Petra.”

A total of 24 teams countrywide are set to battle it out in the main draw for the championship trophy, and the $300,000 cash prize, which will be used for a school project of their choice.
$200,000 and $100,000 are up for grabs for the second and third-placed schools towards a project or items for the school.
The individual awards for MVP, Best Goalkeeper and Highest Goal Scorer will also be presented, along with the award, for most disciplined school.

The teams will be divided in six groups of four after the initial elimination stage with the top two teams, along with the best four third-place teams advancing to the knock-out stage.
The 11th edition of the competition gets underway in March, with elimination rounds determining the 24 teams that will be the round-robin segment of the competition before the knock-out, quarter final, semifinal, and grand finale on May 9.

The round-robin games are set to be played at the Ministry of Education and Queen’s College grounds on Saturday and Sundays, with all the games from the knock-out stage set for the MOE Ground on Carifesta Avenue.