Wood Green school one of 24 set to descent on Stoke City’s stadium to compete within the four Danone Nations Cup tournaments

Some of the best primary school football talent in the country will be on show at Stoke City this Saturday, when the finalists get a taste of Premier League action as they contend to become National Champions of the ESFA Danone Nations Cup.

Twenty-four primary schools and eight inter-district teams will descend on the stadium to compete within the four Danone Nations Cup tournaments that will come to their conclusion this weekend.

Among them is Rhodes Avenue Primary School, of Wood Green, and their girls will be involved in the big day.

Regional Champions within the Schools’ Cup, Small Schools’ Cup, Girls’ Cup and District Cup categories will take their final opportunity to win the coveted titles and take home the glory and the trophy, with all participants receiving medals for their accomplishments.

Teams have already made it through a demanding qualifying process, winning through District, County and Regional competitions to make it this far, and the ESFA and Danone are looking forward to welcoming the teams, friends, family and supporters along to enjoy the atmosphere on the day.

The Schools’ Cup & Small Schools’ Cup kick-off at 11am while the Girls’ Cup & District Cup starts at 3:30pm.

This will be the second consecutive year that the Danone Nations Cup Final is taking place at a Premier League ground, after teams took to Leicester City’s Kingpower Stadium following the Foxes’ Premier League victory last season.

The ESFA and Danone are thrilled to be able to give these primary school children the opportunity to show off their skills at such a prestigious venue for 2017 and look forward to celebrating some of England’s finest young talent on the pitch.

John Scales, a former Tottenham Hotspur, Liverpool and England centre back and ambassador of the tournament, said: “The mantra of the Danone Nations Cup is ‘believe in your dreams’.

“How fitting it will be to see the final at Stoke City Football Club, where so many footballing superstars have played in the Premier League.

“I can’t wait to see the teams in action at the stadium. It will be a fantastic festival of high quality football.”

Off the pitch, Danone will be showing its support and passion for both football and healthy lifestyles through its Eat Like A Champ (ELAC) stand, explaining all about the importance of a balanced diet and healthy hydration in a fun and engaging way.

Danone will also bring back its Healthy Habits Recycling Lab, which will turn recycled plastic into beautiful medals in front of the children’s eyes.

This activity was already rolled out at the Regional Finals, where it was a big hit with the young players and their parents alike, demonstrating the many benefits of recycling.

The English Schools’ FA and Danone are looking forward to welcoming all 32 Finalists to Stoke City on Saturday and wish them all the very best on their final match of the season.