The tournament that grips communities from far and wide is in full swing once again as the fourth edition of World In One City continues to defy logic by bringing together hundreds of supporters every night to celebrate Merseyside’s diversity and watch representatives of nations from Bangladesh to Ireland and beyond.
Already boasting dramatic comeback wins, wonder goals and the odd upset, the juggernaut that started out as a seemingly farfetched idea continues to know no bounds and is attracting more and more attention as the growth continues.
With the group stages coming to a close this week, the likes of England, West Indies, Guinea Bissau and Yemen have already booked their spots in the knockout phase whilst Namibia and Albania have joined footballing powerhouse Brazil as those to be eliminated in the early stages.
Trent Surprises Local Hero | Story of the World In One City
Heading into the final night of Group B knowing avoiding defeat would secure qualification, things may not have gone to plan for Jamaica in the competition after a defeat at the hands of Libya meant the Caribbean nation crashed out, however, they certainly boast the most famous and recognisable supporter in the competition to date and he was in attendance to cheer on his compatriots.
Dan spoke to Liverpool legend John Barnes who was in attendance at League United, Jericho Lane, to watch on as Jamaica were beaten 2-0 having missed an early chance to take the lead as well as a second-half penalty.
On the event: “This is my second time, I came last year, I didn’t come to the group stages, I came to knockout stages and put it this way, it reminded me of football in the eighties. Passion, like the good old days.
“Of course, it’s about people coming together, it’s a great occasion, show their support, show their love. It’s about communities coming together to support the event and show what they can do.”
WEST INDIES v YEMEN – WORLD IN ONE CITY TOURNAMENT – FINAL – LIVERPOOL (2/7/23)
“I’ve been in Liverpool for a long time, I know about the Caribbean community and the Somali community but I didn’t know much about the Congo, Yemen, or Bangladesh so it’s a huge community of people coming together to enjoy sport and to raise the profile, with what’s going on in the world it’s great to see people coming together through sport.
“You have a huge Caribbean and African community in Toxteth which is only a small place but people come from all over Merseyside once it gets to the latter stages you have people coming from Manchester, Preston, all over the place. It’s not just about the players, it’s about the fans, to get hundreds of fans to come down and support from these different communities, showing their love and their pride, showing they love sport, they love their community, it’s great to see.
On the standard: “There are some ringers they’ve brought in, there are some players that play for professional clubs, the standard is very high, and the competitiveness, people want to win. But win with the right spirit, yes determination and aggression, but after they’ve lost, shake hands, and support each other. The camaraderie and brotherhood you have for your opponent is what it’s all about.”
Ahead of the game, Barnes finished in a buoyant mood when it came to qualification: “I always back the Jamaicans.”
Jamaica manager Errol Smith who was joined by Barnes during the warm-up and at one point on the touchline for some words of inspiration had this to say on the event and his pride in leading the nation: “Honestly, the past few months has been an incredible privilege to be able to manage our national side. The lads have all delivered some great moments on and off the pitch.
“Unfortunately last night we didn’t have the quality to go through but it was an incredibly tough group we only lost one game and to go out on four points is a hard pill to swallow but the lads will be back again next year and we expect a much better display.
“We are gutted to leave the tournament at this stage but it just shows again the level and quality continue to improve and our job going forward is to match and better any team put in front of us.”
Ultimately it was a case of what might’ve been for Jamaica but for the World In One City overall it continues to be a love affair with Liverpool and the wider area who have taken this particular international tournament to their hearts and then some.
The group stages finish this week before the knockout phase begins…
