The Main Tournament is open age (players must be at least 16) and generally features younger players from some of the top European clubs playing against more senior players from local clubs and teams around Asia.
According to football legend Graeme Souness, rising stars from the English Premier League will be on show at the Hong Kong Football Club.
“It should an entertaining affair, these are the stars of the future and I would say to anyone who’s got an interest in soccer, come along and watch,” the former Liverpool captain and manager told RTHK’s Backchat programme.
Current and former EPL aces like Jack Grealish, Gary Cahill and Glen Johnson are some of the young players who made a name for themselves in the tournament, which made its debut in the city in 1999.
Brighton will defend their title, headlining a stellar lineup of high-profile clubs like Aston Villa, West Ham United, and Leicester City.
Local favorites like the BC Rangers and Yau Yee League Select will take part as well. This year also brings exciting first-time participants, like AZ Alkmaar, Western United, Larne FC, and Macau FA.
The Women’s Tournament, meanwhile, will return with more teams after a making a successful debut last year. .
Scott Semple, Chairman of the HKFC Soccer Sevens, said the goal is to keep growing the tournament internationally.
“Having AZ Alkmaar from the Netherlands, they’ll be very technical, the teams from England maybe a bit more physical, so different styles and ways of approaching the game,” Semple said.
He added that that the visiting players will get a chance to do some sightseeing around Hong Kong during their stay.
As for Souness, who’s also managed other prolific teams like Rangers and Southampton, said he’s soaking in nostalgia – having made his first visit to Hong Kong back in 1979 as a player.
“Welcoming, humid, the waterfront looks the same to me but I am sure it’s changed with different buildings. I just love being here,” he said.
“I saw something coming into this building which we don’t see in Europe — people queuing orderly to get into the lifts, and it’s such a warm feeling — back in Europe it’s every man for himself and the elbows would be up… [people are] so polite [here] and it’s so nice to see.”
