Torneio dos decadentes

The fall of the prestigious Amsterdam Tournament

As four European clubs line up to take part in the Amsterdam Tournament from July 24 to 26, you will notice that it has lost the magic it once possessed. Big giants of European football (Manchester United, Arsenal, Internazionale, Liverpool, Porto) dreamt of playing in this prestigious tournament at the Amsterdam Arena in the Netherlands, one of the most celebrated stadiums in the world. They would use this famous tournament to fine tune their teams for the upcoming European and domestic season but not any more, especially if you look at this year’s line-up.

The line-up for the 2009 Amsterdam Tournament is Ajax Amsterdam, Atletico Madrid, Sunderland FC (Yep! That very same Sunderland that was fighting to stay in the Premier League last season) and Benfica. If you look at this line-up you will see that it’s lost its previous pulling power and really starting to fade as a prestigious tournament. The four teams contesting don’t have the attractiveness that has always boosted Amsterdam’s tourism business in July and August when the tournament is played. Sunderland finished 16th in the Premier League last season, just a mere two points above the relegation zone. Atletico Madrid finished fourth in the Spanish La Liga, Benfica finished 3rd in the Portuguese Liga and Ajax a very disappointing 3rd in the Dutch league.