In his opening speech, Uzbekistan Football Federation (UFF) General Secretary Sardor Rakhmatullayev thanked AFC for giving the Uzbekistan Football Federation (UFF) the opportunity to organise this event.

“The Festival is not just about matches, but also about courses for young coaches and referees. UFF and AFC share a common cause in the development of youth football,” said Rakhmatullayev.

“The Festival of Football is needed to help youth development in Uzbekistan and Asia. I am happy that AFC has chosen Uzbekistan as the venue of the festival. For our part we will try to create the most favorable conditions for all participants.” summed Rakhmatullayev.

Director of AFC Grassroots and Youth Department John Whittle paid his tributes to the UFF.

“The Football Festival in Uzbekistan is always run at a high level. This is the third year in a row for Uzbekistan to host the Festival. I hope the overall standard of this festival remains good.”

The matches will continue until March 26. Participants will undergo a skills test under the supervision of young coaches who are attending the AFC ‘C’ Coaching Certificate course.

There are 20 coaches attending the course - 14 of which are from the host country and two each from Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan and Tajikistan.

The courses consist of theoretical and practical lessons.

Shavkat Imamov is the course coordinator while the instructor is AFC’s Rustam Akramov and the assistant is Uzbekistan trainer Usman Toshev.