Football 4 Schools 2025 Jamboree to take center stage May 3 at GFA

[April 29, 2025 – Harmon, Guam] Over 500 students from 25 elementary schools and their respective school coaches and administrators will converge at the Guam Football Association National Training Center Saturday when the Triple J Auto Group Football 4 Schools Jamboree returns for its fourth year.

The school-year ending Jamboree is the culmination of the F4S program that included school visits with the Guam Police Department, Guam Airport Police, Guam Youth National Players, and GFA mascots Tasi and Tano, and scheduled regional friendly matches at GFA.

“Football 4 Schools is a good program for students because not many kids have the opportunity and resources to play sports outside of school,” said Monique Alconaba, F4S coach from Machanaonao Elementary School. “It gives them a chance to learn a new sport, stay out of trouble, and have something to look forward to during school hours. Also, it’s the excitement, the eagerness to learn, the joy, the bond that these kids end up having with each that makes the program awesome to have – not only from a coach’s view, but also from a parent’s point of view.

“For this week’s Jamboree, my team and I look forward to having fun, learning more about the sport of football, and challenging teams from different schools,” added Alconaba, who also coaches a U8 team with the ASC Trust Islanders FC in the Triple J Auto Group Robbie Webber Youth League.

The day-long event begins at 8 a.m. with opening remarks and a parade of colors before matches begin at 9:15 a.m. Each of the 25 participating schools in this school year’s program will feature two teams – one boys team and one girls team.

“The Football 4 Schools program is absolutely a great program for elementary school students,” said Nico Fujikawa, F4S coach at St. Francis Catholic School. “It not only brings students together, it introduces the beautiful game to new players and ignites an interest in students who do not have the opportunity to play elsewhere.

“The players and I look forward to challenging other schools with their friends and club teammates. A lot of these players play in the Triple J Auto Group Robbie Webber Youth League and having a chance to play against their teammates makes the game even more exciting for them,” added Fujikawa, who also is the Youth Manager for Quality Distributors FC.

Quality Distributors FC features youth teams from the U6-U13 division and are nicknamed the “QDs”, Fujikawa said.

This year’s participating schools are:

• Adacao Elementary School
• Agana Heights Elementary School
• Astumbo Elementary School
• B.P. Carbullido Elementary School
• C.L. Taitano Elementary School
• D.L. Perez Elementary School
• Dominican Catholic School
• Finegayan Elementary School
• Guahan Academy Charter School
• Harvest Christian Academy
• iLearn Academy Charter School
• Inalahan Elementary School
• Liguan Elementary School
• Machanaonao Elementary School
• Marcial Sablan Elementary School
• Maria Ulloa Elementary School
• Merizo Martyrs Memorial School
• M.U. Lujan Elementary School
• Ordot-Chalan Pago Elementary School
• St. Anthony Catholic School
• St. Francis Catholic School
• Talofofo Elementary School
• Tamuning Elementary School
• Upi Elementary School
• Wettengel Elementary School

Each of the schools took part in regional friendly matches from Mar. 18 to 25 and later, enjoyed school visits by the Guam Police Department, Guam Airport Police, and Guam Youth National Team players. This year’s character-building theme was “Be Safe: Protecting Your Digital World” centering on staying safe online and reducing instances of cyberbullying.

At the core of the Football 4 Schools program is a transformative vision: football serves not just as a game, but also a vehicle toward profound life lessons embedded within each play. The global program was launched by FIFA in collaboration with UNESCO, with the ambitious intiative targeting education, development, and empowerment of over 700 million children around the world.

In its inaugural year in Guam in 2022, 16 elementary schools participated in the program. The number of participating schools increased to 24 for 2023 and 2024. An additional school was added for 2025.

Participating schools received football equipment from GFA to help kickstart the new 2025 season for Football 4 Schools earlier in the year as well as access to the FIFA F4S app with sample coaching sessions and activities for youth players. The GFA Technical Department also conducted a special F4S coaching course for school coaches in January.

The 2025 program is supported by local business partners Triple J Auto Group, KUAM Communications and KUAM Sports, Pay-Less Community Foundation, LeoPalace Guam, IT&E, QuickBites, PFC Finance, and First Class Travel Agency.

For more information about the Football 4 Schools program, contact the GFA Football Events Department via Email at [email protected]