“Would you like to play a game with Andrea Pirlo?“. Anyone who loves football would not have missed this opportunity, and with the thrill of a child I had the opportunity to play under the eyes of one of the strongest players in football history in the Motorola Cup, held in Turin on Sunday 19 December. I do not want the Maestro from Brescia, however, in saying that the protagonists of the match were undoubtedly the boys of the Insuperabili, which have shown how extraordinary goals can be achieved thanks to sport.
What is the Motorola Cup? The words of Pirlo and the protagonists
The Motorola Cup is an initiative conceived by EY Consulting and promoted by Motorola with the aim of focusing attention on a topic which, especially in recent months, there is really too little talk: the integration and inclusion in society of people with disabilities. This project goes in the direction of Motorola, which for some time has been spending a lot on promoting the use of technology by people with disabilities, through the #PowerToEmpower project. For this, the US company together with his Brand Ambassador, the unforgettable Andrea Pirlo, a former footballer and now a coach, has thought of a charity match between a selection of journalists who are passionate about football and the Insuperabili team.
For those who don’t know who I am, Gli Insuperabili Onlus is a Turin-based company born almost 10 years ago, in 2012. Since then, the goal is promoting the integration and inclusion of children with cognitive, physical, motor or behavioral disabilities through football and sport. The Insuperables want show how, thanks to football, children can only have benefits from a physical and moral point of view. Thanks to the training and matches they play every month, the boys improve their quality of life, and being able to integrate better into society. Also from a sporting point of view, the Insuperabili project is having success. The team graduated fourth category Italian Champion in 2019, and this year they will participate in the Paralympic and Experimental Championship organized by the FIGC.
The project, sponsored by many players including Juventus captain Giorgio Chiellini, has given enormous results. In this way, it is shown how, thanks to the passion for football, we are really all the same, without filters. “The Motorola Cup was born with the intent to focus attention on how important it is especially for young talents, in sport, as in life, get involved, striving to overcome any difficulty and to achieve their dreams. “, commented Carlo Barlocco, Executive Director from Motorola Italy. “I believe that the Insuperabili represent these values perfectly. This is why we are particularly happy to have shared this exciting experience with them, in the presence of an Italian sporting heritage such as Andrea Pirlo. With this initiative, Motorola confirms its commitment to support the world of sport, a vehicle for the enhancement of talents and the creation of a more inclusive society ”.
Also Andrea Pirlo, interviewed by us and colleagues, he expressed his satisfaction in participating in such a beautiful project. “I am really happy to have participated in the Motorola Cup together with these extraordinary guys who are truly Insuperable.”, Commented the World Champion. “I am very happy to have contributed to a project like this which is growing more and more. Football helps promote the values of inclusion and being together. Thanks to Motorola and Gli Insuperabili, and I hope that projects like this can have the visibility they deserve. “
In that green rectangle we are all the same: an absolute level 3-2 between Insuperabili and journalists … “mixed”
We thus arrived on the pitch on a beautiful but cold day in Turin, ready to compete against the pitch under the eyes of Andrea Pirlo. The Mister, like all the boys, immediately started calling Pirlo spoke to all the guys from Insuperabili, from the youngest to the oldest, dispensing advice and giving everyone, including us, truly enormous moments of emotion. After an essential training to warm up in the winter climate of Rivoli, our “selection” of journalists mixed with the first team of the Insuperabili, ready to do battle on the pitch. Blue against White, without any distinction.
The kick-off was beaten by Pirlo himself, and after a few seconds it was clear that we are serious here. If you would expect to see a match with the same rhythms as Wednesday soccer with friends, you are wrong. The Insuperabili boys run, fight, show off great tactical intelligence and good technique, and the first actions are proof of this. The writer has lined up in midfield for the Blue team: making the (little) talent and (poor) physical shape I have available to the team, after a few minutes I witness a splendid action. Textbook counter-attack, quick exchange and our wing, Giuseppe, dashes towards the goal and strikes the opposing goalkeeper with a powerful right: 1-0.
The game goes at a really fast pace, with the 7-a-side pitch that doesn’t seem to contain the boys’ desire to play. The contrasts are tough, the technical gestures of excellent workmanship and the game passes quickly under the eyes of Mister Pirlo. Before half-time strikes, the Blue team finds the 2-0 with Giuseppe’s brace, on a day of grace. In the second half, the Blue team finds the 3-0 with another counterattack punished by Pavel, which puts the result on ice. Nothing can comeback of the White square, who with great strength finds two more goals with Francesco and Omar, but it is not enough. Our Blue Team wins 3-2, but it is sport and friendship that win.
The Motorola Cup has shown us the role of sport for maximum inclusiveness
The award ceremony carried out by Andrea Pirlo is the crowning of an incredible day of sport. The Motorola Cup was won by the Insuperabili, all those who were in the field, on both sides. After a few seconds, in fact, we journalists have forgotten the context, and the boys have forgotten that they are under the eyes of Pirlo. As soon as the kick-off was called, there was no more room to think. Only sport entered the Motorola Cup, which made us all equal. The desire to get involved, to give your best, to have fun and try to win and overcome any difficulty. These are values that football teaches everyone, and that everyone, not just the Insuperabili, should always use in life. On the pitch, in the cold and running after a ball, we were no longer journalists and Insuperabili.
We were friends, ready to play for each other, to play as a team and to have fun. For this, at the end of the game there is there was space only for smiles, joy and happiness, with even the usually cold Pirlo letting himself go with laughter, congratulations and congratulations to all the boys. On the pitch, the game of football is the only thing that matters, and it is more important and stronger than any differences between us.. And this is what I will forever carry inside of a splendid experience, one that opens my eyes to what the word inclusiveness and equality really means. Thanks to Motorola for the invitation to the wonderful day, thanks to Andrea Pirlo for his advice and his desire to participate. Thanks, above all, to the Insuperabili, special guys with great talent who show every day that, in life, everything is possible: from today you have one more big fan.