Meeting of the President of Turkmenistan with the head of the International Federation of Football Associations

On May 4, 2023, at the Olympic Stadium, located in the capital's Olympic Village, President Serdar Berdimuhamedov met with President of the International Federation of Football Associations (FIFA) Gianni Infantino.

Greeting the guest on the ancient and hospitable Turkmen land, the head of state first of all congratulated him on his re-election as the President of the International Federation of Football Associations and wished him new success in the development of football around the world.

President Serdar Berdimuhamedov stressed that he keeps the warmest memories of their meeting last December in Doha (State of Qatar), where one of the matches of the World Cup was held, at which an invitation to visit Turkmenistan was accepted.

Expressing gratitude for the invitation to visit Turkmenistan and the time allotted for a personal meeting, the head of FIFA sincerely thanked President Serdar Berdimuhamedov for the warm welcome and the opportunity to see the achievements of modern Turkmenistan with his own eyes.

Speaking about the main milestones in the development of domestic football, President Serdar Berdimuhamedov noted that the Football Federation of Turkmenistan was established in 1992. In the same year, games of the National Major League of Turkmenistan and tournaments for the Cup of Turkmenistan begin to be held. In 1994, the Football Federation of Turkmenistan became a member of FIFA and the Asian Football Confederation.

As noted, the Football Federation of Turkmenistan pays great attention to the development of children's football. As a result, since 2000, with the active participation of the Football Federation of Turkmenistan and UNICEF, together with FIFA, Grassroots football festivals have been held on a regular basis from March to November, in which football players of various ages take part.

Every year, the Football Federation of Turkmenistan, together with FIFA, holds international seminars in our country to improve the skills of football and mini-football referees, as a result of which referees who have successfully passed the tests receive the status of an international class referee.

During the meeting, the guest presented the head of Turkmenistan with a symbolic gift - a personalized T-shirt, an official ball and a FIFA pennant.

Thanking the Turkmen side for the willingness and desire to further intensify cooperation in the field of sports, the President of the International Federation of Football Associations highly appreciated the large-scale work carried out in the country to popularize the mass physical culture and health improvement movement and elite sports.