PALEMBANG, OCTOBER 20, 2024. Nine school futsal teams from Sumatra competed in the Regional Final of the AXIS Nation Cup (ANC) 2024 at GOR (sport hall) Dempo Jakabaring in Palembang, South Sumatra, on Saturday (19/10). After successfully advancing through a long qualifying round in their respective cities, SMAN 4 Metro Lampung secured first place in the Regional Final. They will represent Sumatra's student futsal teams in the next stage at the Grand Final of ANC 2024, set for November 16, 2024, at Indonesia Arena, GBK Jakarta.
Eight additional schools participating are SMA Labschool Unsyiah Banda Aceh, SMK TI Budi Agung Medan, SMAN 1 Padangsidempuan, MAN 2 Batam, SMA Negeri Olahraga - SKO (Special Sports School) Riau, SMA Negeri 1 Solok Selatan, SMA Negeri 1 Tanjung Jabung Barat, and SMAN 1 Tanjung Batu.
These champion teams have triumphed over dozens of schools in their respective areas: Aceh, Medan, Tebing Tinggi, Batam, Pekanbaru, Padang, Jambi, Palembang, and Lampung. In total, 360 school teams from across Sumatra participated in the tournament, attracting an audience of up to 80,000 spectators throughout the futsal competition.
Awards for the winners of the ANC 2024 Regional Final were presented by Desy Sari Dewi, Group Head of XL Axiata West Region, along with Trisna Gunawan, Head of Sales XL Axiata West Southern Sumatra 1, Budi Utama Lubis, Head of Sales XL Axiata West Southern Sumatra 2, and Endang Astutiningsih, Event & Activation Youth Segment XL Axiata. The awards were given to the boys' champion team, SMAN 4 Metro Lampung, and the runner-up, SMK TI Budi Agung Medan, in Palembang.
Group Head XL Axiata West Region, Desy Sari Dewi stated, "These young talents are incredibly motivated to achieve greatness. That's why we at XL Axiata are thrilled to support them in realizing their dreams by organizing this largest high school futsal tournament in Indonesia. We aim to contribute to enhancing sports achievements among students while also strengthening AXIS's brand positioning in the youth segment. We hope that the school teams from Sumatra can emerge victorious in the Grand Final of the AXIS Nation Cup 2024 at Indonesia Arena, GBK Jakarta."
The futsal tournament in the regional stage employs a group tournament system. In Sumatra, the winners of the qualifying rounds from each province compete to represent their province in the regional stage held in Palembang on October 19, 2024. The winner of this regional round will compete to represent the Sumatra region in the Grand Final. The boys' futsal team from SMAN 4 Metro Lampung, as the regional champion in Palembang, will represent the Sumatra region. Additionally, the top girls' teams, SMAN 10 Palembang and SMK Ma’arif Purbolinggo from East Lampung, will also represent Sumatra in the Grand Final. A total of 12 boys' teams and 5 girls' teams will compete for the AXIS Nation Cup 2024 championship in the Grand Final at Indonesia Arena, GBK Jakarta, on November 16, 2024.
The nine winning boys' teams from their respective provinces will each receive a development prize of Rp 6,000,000, while the girls' teams will earn Rp 3,000,000. The qualifying rounds in Sumatra took place at various venues, including Embassy Sport Center (Banda Aceh), GOR Futsal Disporasu (Medan), GOR Asber Nasution (Tebing Tinggi), Sporthall Temenggung Abdul Jamal (Batam), Gelanggang Olahraga Remaja (Pekanbaru), GOR Universitas Negeri Padang (Padang), GOR Kota Baru (Jambi), GOR Dempo Jakabaring (Palembang), and Pusat Kegiatan Olahraga (PKOR) Lampung.
In addition to the futsal tournament, schools in Jabodetabek have the chance to participate in another event, the supporter competition. Each school selected for both competitions will be assessed, and one top team will be chosen from the nine schools. The winners of the supporter competition will receive a prize of Rp 2,500,000.
On a national scale, the AXIS Nation Cup 2024 is being held in 40 cities, involving 1,650 schools and a total of 16,500 athletes from all over Indonesia. This year, the AXIS Nation Cup has also added a new category for girls' futsal. A total prize pool of Rp 870 million is available for the winners, along with the chance for five exceptional players to attend a training camp with a renowned football club.