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The twin island nation of Antigua and Barbuda will create history this summer by hosting the much-anticipated Island Cup Open (ISCO). An inaugural Championship Football Tournament, slated for July 15 through August 13, 2022.
ISCO’s Chairman/CFO Chris Anderson-Joyeau, and CEO/Commissioner Mr. Paul Mohamed, had an extensive meeting in St. John’s Antigua last week, with its Minister of Tourism & Investment, Charles H. Fernandez and the Minister for Education, Sports and the Creative Arts, Daryll Matthew. This resulted in an endorsement and green light being extended for ISCO to be held in Antigua & Barbuda, much to the delight and appreciation of the ISCO Executives.
“Today is a great day not only for ISCO; but the people of Antigua and Barbuda, and most importantly the footballers and fans of the Caribbean,” said CEO /Commissioner Paul Mohamed, the Cardiff City based attorney.
The Sir Vivian Richards Stadium will be the venue for what is being regarded as the biggest sporting and entertainment event in the region.
Eight (8) teams will participate in the Inaugural tournament, including the Combined Islands Sharks franchise, which will be based in Antigua for its month-long pre-season training camp.
“There is so much more to ISCO than just football. We will fuse football with entertainment for all live games, providing some of the leading entertainers of the world, not to mention the caliber of International players and coaches who will be a part of this tournament,” added Paul Mohamed.
The ISCO delegation also held discussions with Antigua and Barbuda’s Prime Minister Gaston A. Browne and Deputy Prime Minister/Attorney General Steadroy C.O. Benjamin, on the issue of constructing a new football-specific 20,000 seat Stadium; a 4–5-Star Hotel and other real estate investments in Antigua, which were favorably received.
ISCO is fully committed to financing the necessary investments as part of the all-inclusive ISCO eco system design. All done through its SINGLE ENTITY CONCEPT (SEC) in professional football/soccer discipline, with the view of a sound return of investment in both the short and long terms.
ISCO will officially launch on May 21 in Antigua with a Game of Legends event, which will include a British Royals Legends team VS a Rest of the World Stars featuring most of the Legends (recently retired world stars) in football.
ISCO’s magical blending of football games featuring its global stars and the live mainstream music artists, will give unprecedented value to fans worldwide, via the various global digital platforms. With this in mind, some of the most popular international music Artists of the new era will all be a part of the ISCO FETE FEST, before, during, and after the game.
This year will see the ISCO tournament hosted only in Antigua with one Cup Championship titled as the PLAY 4 Championship, carrying a cash prize of $1 M Euro to the winner.
In 2023, the tournament will be a full 12-week schedule played in other markets currently in discussions with ISCO. The planned Championships for these locations will be the ISCO Challenge 8 and Cup Winners Cup, each offering a $1M winner take all cash prize.
To date, ISCO has confirmed the following 8 franchises for participation in 2022: AFRICA Ubuntu, BRAZIL Samba Warriors, BRITISH Royals, COMBINED ISLANDS Sharks, COLOMBIA Tapirs, FC EUROPA Union, ASIA Dragonaires and the TnT Soca Rivals.
Sir Viv Richards has officially been appointed as Ambassador of the COMBINED ISLANDS Sharks franchise, and by extension ISCO.
Chairman/CFO Anderson-Joyeau, a Forensic Auditor by profession, stated that his main commitment in the implementation of this tournament is to maintain the necessary financial sustainability for his newly found charity ‘KICK POVERTY OUT (KPO) Campaign’. The objective of this charity is to change the lives of impoverished youth, their families, and communities by using football and entertainment as the platforms to reach this goal.
