A great day of strategic networking on and off football pitch
International students from three universities of applied sciences – SeAMK, SAMK and Centria – organized their first football tournament and networking event in Kokkola on 9 November 2024. The tournament featured matches of competitive teams and amateur teams. Once the Coppa West championship was settled, the day was topped off with an afterparty at West Coast Billiards of music and socializing. Congratulations to Centria for winning both series!
“The event was perfect! Everything was arranged very good. I loved it, and hopefully there will be more girls next year. But it was fun to meet other people while being a bit competitive”, says Lieze Theuwis, Belgian exchange student from SeAMK who also plays for women’s team in SJK while studying in Seinäjoki.
SeAMK gathered an impressive crew for this first Coppa West event.
“We took a bus with a total of 70 participants to Kokkola, both players and supporters. I think we made a good impression there, and what’s most important, had a lot of fun”, tells Andres Mendez, International Facilitator from SeAMK International Education Services, who was one of the event coordinators.
Passionate for sports, especially football, Lieze Theuwis was attracted to Coppa West with possibility to play a nice, bit different kind of tournament.
“I love meeting new people and seeing how people play in other cultures. It is fascinating – there are some differences but there are a lot of similarities as well. The SJK team also did not train for the past month and I really wanted to play again so this was the perfect opportunity to do so. While having our own supporters team of course, I love tournaments cause it is a whole other experience then just your own game.”
Centria, SAMK and SeAMK work closely together to promote education, research and regional development on the West Coast. In February, the two universities signed a strategic cooperation agreement to promote the sharing of knowledge and resources and to develop common approaches. Ensuring the availability of a workforce is a key factor in the vitality of higher education areas. Promoting the recruitment, integration and employment of international students is an important objective to ensure the vitality of the regions.
The Coppa West tournament provides an opportunity to increase interaction between students and personnel in the higher education institutions and international students in particular are involved in the tournament. As a whole, the event represents the institutions’ aim to promote regional community and cohesion – this time by the means of sports!
