Spanish footballer Fabregas visits Erbil with message for youth

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region - Spanish footballer Cesc Fabregas is visiting the Kurdistan Region with a message for young aspiring athletes to keep up their hard work in order to succeed.

FIFA World Cup Winner Fabregas, who arrived in Erbil on Friday afternoon, attended a panel where he answered questions from the audience. 

“Football is very important for young people, because obviously they are the future, and they are the next generation that will give us pleasure when we watch them on TV,” he said. 

“That is why they deserve and need the right education, to be representing the world in the right manner,” he added, emphasizing the importance of supporting the youth and leading by example. 

The former Barcelona player and Arsenal captain said that young people must put in a lot of hard work and believe in themselves in order to achieve their goals. 

The panel was organized by INGOT Brokers, which in May became the Spanish Football League’s (LaLiga) Middle East and North Africa regional financial partner.

“We are aware that we have a big fan base here in Erbil, in Kurdistan, and in Iraq, and for us, it is very important,” said Luis Cardenas, LaLiga’s head of partnerships in the Middle East and Africa. 

“We believe that there are so much talent in Iraq that needs to be recognized, and this is something we really want to do,” he added. 

Fabregas is a Spanish footballing legend who assisted on the most precious goal in his country’s history in the 2010 World Cup final in South Africa against the Netherlands. He is widely recognized as one of Spain’s best midfielders of all time.

On his first trip to Erbil, Fabregas said he had not expected “such a positive atmosphere.”