Manchester United is preparing to host some of the young football stars of the future

as the twenty best under-15 teams in the world congregate in Manchester, England for the

World Finals of the Manchester United Premier Cup, from 2nd-5th August.

The Opening Ceremony and Draw will take place at the Red Cinema, Manchester on Sunday

1st August at 6 pm, attended by guests of honour Sir Alex Ferguson, Ruud van Nistelrooy

and Darren Fletcher. Tournament matches will be played at the Manchester United training

facility in Carrington, and the Final will take place at the "Theatre of

Dreams", Old Trafford on Thursday 5th August at 5pm, as curtain raiser to the

concluding games in the Vodafone Cup.

What started as a regional tournament with participants from 15 countries back in 1993

today involves nearly 8,000 teams in a worldwide event jointly sponsored by Nike and

Manchester United as part of their commitment to youth participation and skills

development. From grassroots clubs to some of the most renowned names in football, Premier

Cup offers a unique experience for aspiring players from five continents, to live the

dream of world-class football.

Sir Alex Ferguson comments: 'It is essential that tournaments

like the Manchester United Premier Cup take place as they are key to developing the

football players of the future. This tournament is particularly good as it brings together

talent from across the world. The recent success of Jonathan Spector with Manchester

United is proof that this tournament goes a long way to developing and identifying the

stars of tomorrow'

A wealth of players have gone from Premier Cup to national and international success.

Jonathan Spector, who was recently awarded Academy Player of Year at Manchester United and

is breaking into the first team, played in the 1999 Nike Premier Cup World Finals in

Barcelona for Chicago team Sockers FC.

Other "old boys" include Jose Antonio Reyes, who played for Sevilla in 1997

and last season joined English Premiership champions, Arsenal, plus Real Madrid Goalkeeper

Iker Casillas and Xavi of Barcelona.

South African giants Kaizer Chiefs and Alta Loma Arsenal from the USA are first time

qualifiers for the Manchester United Premier Cup World Finals and Arsenal Coach Steve

Lucey hopes the international nature of the event will inspire his young team: " It

will be exciting to play at levels we don't always see at home. Some of our younger

players have not experienced a very high level of competition and it will be interesting

to see how they manage, especially against some of the more physical teams".