Andreas Kolland is elected to the Hall Of Fame

German Andreas Kolland has, since his 1997 Gothia Cup debut, been here with at least one team every year. In total he has, with his KFV Segeberg, participated with just under 200 teams and won the tournament no less than six times. – I am very proud, he says.

Since 2007, leaders and enthusiasts with special impact have been selected in Gothia Cup’s Hall Of Fame. This year it was Andreas Kolland’s turn. With the German district team KFV Segeberg he has been part of the Gothia Cup for over 20 years and the trip to Sweden is now a given element every year for the whole family.

– Gothia Cup is special. You can go on other tournaments and have a good week but nothing is like the Gothia Cup, says Andreas Kolland.

Andreas Kolland’s Gothia Cup adventure began in 1997 when his old coach advised him on a tournament in Sweden that he strongly recommended.

– My old coach called me to tell us about the big tournament in Sweden. You have to go there. It is amazing. It was my first year here at Gothia Cup, he says and continues:

– It was amazing. Just the theme “Meet the world”. I had never heard of any similar tournament. So I started organizing trips to the Gothia Cup. In the beginning only for my own team. Then we continued to bring several teams. 1999 was the first year we also had with us girls teams.

It was also then Andreas started organizing to go to Gothia Cup with district teams.

– We started talking to other smaller clubs. We said that we can organize and fix everything but we need strong teams. Sure, you can go to Sweden with a small club. It will be nice and everything but you can’t win. You need a strong team, says Andreas.

Andreas and KFV Segeberg have also participated in several different Gothia Cups. With one of their girl teams, they won the first Gothia Cup China, in Pyongyang.

– It was a wonderful experience. It is organized as Gothia Cup, it is called Gothia Cup, but it is more like a regular tournament. Nothing is like Gothia Cup here in Gothenburg. This is THE Gothia Cup, he says.

Now Andreas is one of 28 other enthusiasts who are selected in the Gothia Cup’s own Hall of Fame.

– When I got the call I was shocked. Positively shocked. But of course I am very proud, he says.