Football fans in the Middle East can now vote online for their favourite young player at the 2006 FIFA World Cup™ starting June 9th. FIFA, world football’s governing body, announced the list of candidates for the Gillette Best Young Player Award, following the announcement of the official team rosters for the 2006 FIFA World Cup. In total, 40 players from 21 nations will compete for the inaugural award. Switzerland led all nations with six eligible players.
With the final team rosters confirmed, Gillette, part of The Procter & Gamble Company and FIFA compiled the list of official candidates, which includes star names such as Argentinean Lionel Messi, England’s Wayne Rooney and Lukas Podolski, of host nation Germany.
The Gillette Best Young Player Award winner will be determined by the FIFA Technical Study Group (TSG), headed by Holger Osieck. Fans will have the opportunity to assist in choosing the winner by making their selections via www.FIFAworldcup.com. A final shortlist of six players will be drawn up on July 6th, with the winner announced on Friday, July 7th at a press conference in Berlin.
The FIFA World Cup has launched many great careers, with such icons as Pelé (Sweden ’58) and Michael Owen (France ’98) bursting onto the global stage at an early age.
”This prestigious honour will be an endorsement for the winning player’s future and will stay with him forever. Gillette has been a loyal Partner with FIFA for many years and we take great pride that its dedication to the ‘beautiful game’ continues with the support of the Best Young Player award,” said FIFA President Joseph S. Blatter.
“The Gillette Best Young Player Award is Gillette’s way of honouring the young athletes who have performed like champions,” said Ahmed Al Mahdy, Business Manager, P & G, Arabian Peninsula. “This award mirrors our goal of reaching the highest possible standards of personal performance.”
• Mario (Angola) – 01/06/1985
• Lionel Messi (Argentina) – 24/06/1987
• Oscar Ustari (Argentina) – 03/07/1986
• Mark Milligan (Australia) – 04/08/1985
• Luka Moderic (Croatia) – 09/09/1985
• Christian Benitez (Ecuador) – 01/05/1986
• Luis Valencia (Ecuador) – 04/08/1985
• Aaron Lennon (England) – 16/04/1987
• Wayne Rooney (England) – 24/10/1985
• Theo Walcott (England) – 16/03/1989
• Marcell Jansen (Germany) – 04/11/1985
• Lukas Podolski (Germany) – 04/06/1985
• Haminu Dramani (Ghana) 01/04/1986
• Asamoah Gyan (Ghana) – 22/11/1985
• Hossein Kaabi (Iran) – 23/09/1985
• Ji Hooni Baek (Korea Rep.) – 28/02/1985
• Jin Kyu Kim (Korea Rep.) – 16/02/1985
• Chu Young Park (Korea Rep) – 10/07/1985
• Andres Guardado (Mexico) – (28/09/1986)
• Guillermo Ochoa (Mexico) – 13/07/1985
• Ryan Babel (Netherlands) – 19/12/1986
• Hedwiges Maduro (Netherlands) – 13/02/1985
• Jose Montiel (Paraguay) – 19/03/1988
• Lukasz Fabianski (Poland) – 18/04/1985
• Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal) – 05/02/1985
• Mohammed Al Anbar (Saudi Arabia) – 22/03/1985
• Cesc Fabregas (Spain) – 04/05/1987
• Sergio Ramos (Spain) – 30/03/1986
• Tranquillo Barnetta (Switzerland) – 22/05/1985
• Valon Behrami (Switzerland) – 19/04/1985
• Johan Djourou (Switzerland) – 18/01/1987
• Blerim Dzemaili (Switzerland) – 12/04/1986
• Phillippe Senderos (Switzerland) – 14/02/1985
• Johan Vonlanthen (Switzerland) – 01/02/1986
• Toure Assimiou (Togo) – 01/01/1986
• Karim Guede (Togo) – 01/01/1986
• Yassine Chikhaoui (Tunisia) 22/09/1986
• Dmytro Chigrynskiy (Ukraine) – 07/11/1986
• Artem Mileveskiy (Ukraine) – 12/01/1985
• Bogdan Shust (Ukraine) 04/03/1986
Award Criteria
The Gillette Best Young Player Award recognises the most outstanding young player (under 21 years of age on January 1 of the tournament year) during the 2006 FIFA World Cup™ tournament. The FIFA Technical Study Group will review and select the best young player based on a range of factors. The seven criteria to be used are:
1. Skill
2. Youthful and refreshing playing style
3. Creativity and entertainment
4. Tactical maturity
5. Fan recognition
6. Results
7. Fair Play
In addition to these attributes, the young player’s performance as a role model and positive influence will also be taken into consideration.
Fan Interaction
Fans will have the opportunity to participate in the selection of this official FIFA award by selecting the young player they judge to have been the best performer in the 2006 FIFA World Cup™. Then, a shortlist of the top three players selected by the fans, and the top three players selected by the FIFA Technical Study Group, will be created and reviewed by the Technical Study Group. The criteria listed above will be used to evaluate the performances of the shortlisted players, and a winner will be selected by the FIFA Technical Study Group.
Website
By logging on and registering at www.FIFAworldcup.com starting 9 June 2006 and running through 5 July 2006, fans will be able to select the player they feel most worthy to win the award. Each fan will have the opportunity to select only one player, but fans may change their votes as often as they wish prior to the close of voting. Fans can also access the Best Young Player area by logging on at www.gillette.com/fifaworldcup.
In addition, the website will feature statistics and biographical information on famous young performers from previous FIFA World Cups, as well as details on potential candidates for the 2006 Gillette Best Young Player award.
About Procter & Gamble
Three billion times a day, P&G brands touch the lives of people around the world. The company has one of the strongest portfolios of trusted, quality, leadership brands, including Pampers®, Tide®, Ariel®, Always®, Whisper®, Pantene® , Mach3®, Bounty®, Dawn®, Pringles®, Folgers®, Charmin®, Downy®, Lenor®, Iams®, Crest®, Oral-B®, Actonel®, Duracell®, Olay®, Head & Shoulders®, Wella, Gillette®, and Braun. The P&G community consists of almost 140,000 employees working in over 80 countries worldwide. Please visit http://www.pg.com for the latest news and in-depth information about P&G and its brands.
About FIFA
For the past 101 years, the Fédération Internationale de Football Association, founded on 21 May 1904 in Paris and better known as FIFA, has continued to provide the essential leadership role to the international football family. Headquartered in Zurich, Switzerland, the eighth FIFA President, Joseph S. Blatter (Switzerland), guides the organisation today with a commitment to the evolution of FIFA as a modern and dynamic association. The basis of the world’s football family is formed by FIFA’s member associations. From the founding seven in 1904, the family has today grown to 207 affiliated associations, also organised into six confederations spanning the globe. FIFA’s worldwide activities go well beyond its various competitions, such as the world’s biggest single-sport event, the FIFA World Cup™. In projects such as the FIFA GOAL Programme as well as several other development and charity activities such as the SOS Children Villages, FIFA gives material, financial and promotional support to develop the game and bring joy to underprivileged worldwide.
