- Copa Enel will carry out a digital version of the tournament, focused on providing training tools in youth soccer to the team's coaches that participate in the championship every year.
- Efficient Football, the leading school in online training for professional soccer, developed a master's degree for coaches taught by professionals from important European clubs, such as Athletic Club de Bilbao and even Felix Cao, one of Manuel Pellegrini's current physical trainers at Real Betis.
Santiago, November 18, 2021 – Copa Enel, the most influential children's soccer tournament in Chile, organized and developed in partnership with the Iván Zamorano Foundation, will kick off on its 20th anniversary.
Given the current situation still facing the country due to the coronavirus pandemic, our Company prioritizes safety; therefore, the tournament will not be held on the courts in 2021. However, we wanted to continue the project differently. Thus, as a sort of pre-season championship, the Copa Enel will be played through an initiative aimed at the technical improvement of participating coaches.
“In 2021, Copa Enel celebrated its 20th anniversary. We have witnessed the enthusiasm and motivation of more than 100 thousand participating children during all these years, many of whom have even had important achievements such as playing for professional teams in the country. Therefore, we wanted to give continuity to this project, this time with a focus on education and training for the coaches who are in charge of directing and teaching kids who participate in this symbolic children's soccer tournament”, said Ramón Castañeda, Enel Distribución’s General Manager.
“We celebrate 20 years of this important tournament, which despite the pandemic is still more alive than ever and is preparing for the return to the fields. This year, however, Copa Enel will be different. Thanks to Efficient Football Master, technical directors and delegates of different teams will be able to prepare their players with better tools, raising the level of the tournament and thus preparing for the return of a face-to-face championship. We are proud to continue with this important project because we know how relevant it is to form new talents for national soccer, both technically and in terms of values”, said Iván Zamorano, historical ambassador of Copa Enel.
This is the first digital master's degree for coaches, developed by the No. 1 school in online training for professional development in soccer, "Efficient Football," an institution that aims to improve and facilitate access to high-performance soccer for all. Enel Distribución, through Copa Enel 2021, will provide free training to more than 200 coaches and delegates, offering them a master's degree with micro learning methodology. It includes 15 to 30 minutes classes, allowing students (coaches and representatives of Copa Enel clubs) to improve at their own pace and remotely, through on-demand courses, with relevant figures who are part of other technical staff of important European clubs.
The master will be available to all teachers of the teams participating in Copa Enel. Classes will address important topics for the training of soccer players, such as sports psychology, nutrition and, technical aspects. The goal is that coaches acquire more knowledge and thus prepare their squads in the best way for the on-site tournament that should take place during 2022.
Over 210 technical directors and 37 delegates of different teams participating in Copa Enel will take more than 125 classes to complete the five modules of the master's program. Therefore, their skills will improve through this program, the first of its kind in Chile, acquiring relevant knowledge to prepare their players.