Hall of Fame

For 16 consecutive years, Armando Lopes has attended the Gothia Cup as our representative in Portugal. Through his dedication and commitment, Armando has helped establish Portugal as an important and highly valued part of the Gothia Cup community.

The teams that have participated through Armando have consistently been excellent ambassadors for both their clubs and Portugal, on and off the pitch.

For these outstanding contributions, Armando Lopes is a worthy inductee into the Gothia Cup Hall of Fame, to which he was elected on 14 July 2026.

For 25 consecutive years Berthold Happe has been attending the Gothia Cup together with his club SG Borken e.V. During this period Berthold has brought almost 100 teams to the Gothia Cup.

Teams that have been coming with Berthold have always acted as excellent ambassadors for the club and for Germany both off and on the fields.

All this makes him a worthy member of the Gothia Cup Hall of Fame to which he has been selected on July 15, 2025.

During his over 20 years as a Gothia Cup representative, Ziad Saade has brought over 200 Lebanese teams to western Sweden to participate in the world's largest youth football tournament. We are pleased that he’s now being inducted into the Hall of Fame, and we hope that he continues to attract teams of that caliber in the future.

All the teams that have been coming with Iñaki have always acted as excellent ambassadors for the home country of Spain and some of the players has also become known throughout the world. All this makes him a worthy member of the Gothia Cup Hall of Fame to which he has been selected on July 18, 2023.

Since 1997 Ludvik Arnarson has been one of our most important representatives. Ludvik Arnarson has brought more than 400 teams from Iceland to the Gothia Cup during a period of 26 years. All the teams that have been coming with Ludvik have always acted as excellent ambassadors for the country of Iceland. All this makes him a worthy member of the Gothia Cup Hall of Fame to which he has been selected on July 19, 2022.

Since 1992 Barry Walmsley has been one of our most important representatives and is a dear and well-known guest at the tournament.  During the years Barry has brought more than 250 US teams to the Gothia Cup. All the teams that have been coming with Barry have always acted as excellent ambassadors for their clubs and their country. All this makes him a worthy member of the Gothia Cup Hall of Fame to which he has been selected on July 19th, 2022.

Since 1993 Andreas Kolland has been one of our most loyal ambassadors. All the teams that have been coming with Andreas have always shown outstanding behaviour both on and off the playing fields. In addition, six times has Andreas as a coach won the tournament. Andreas Kolland has brought almost 200 teams from KFV Segeberg to the Gothia Cup and is a dear and well-known guest at the tournament. All this makes him a worthy member of the Gothia Cup Hall of Fame to which he has been selected on July 16, 2019.

Juan Llandrich Canals was a person who lived for youth football, both male and female, and for his club CE Sant Gabriel. With his Sant Gabriel, he won Gothia Cup five times but he participated so many more times. He more or less introduced Spanish football to the Gothia Cup. Juan Llandrich Canals sadly passed away in 2018 and was inducted into the Hall of fame posthumously, on July 17, 2018.

During almost 30 years Leonardo Mascarenhas has been one of our most loyal and active representatives. He has brought thousands of Brasilian youngsters to the Gothia Cup, more than anyone else, and is a dear and well-known guest at the tournament. All this makes him a worthy member of the Gothia Cup Hall of Fame to which he has been selected on July 18, 2017.

Since early 1980 Christian Pornin has been one of our most loyal representatives. All the teams that have been coming with Christian have always shown outstanding behaviour both on and off the playing fields. Christian Pornin has brought thousands of French youngsters to the Gothia Cup and is a dear and well-known guest at the tournament. All this makes him a worthy member of the Gothia Cup Hall of Fame to which he has been selected on July 18, 2017.

For 25 years, Hans Walter Eiteljörge and his club SC Borgfeld eV have been among our most loyal guests. All teams that have come to Gothemburg with Hans Walter have always shown outstanding behaviour, both on and off the playing field. Hans Walter has taken hundreds of young Germans to the Gothia Cup and is a popular and well-known guest in the tournament. This makes him a worthy member of the Gothia Cup Hall of Fame, an honour for which he was awarded on July 19th, 2016.

For 15 years Mr. Hugo Petrella has been one of our most faithful visitors, together with his club CEF 18 from Tucumán. All teams that have participated with Mr. Petrella have always shown exceptional behaviour on and off the playing fields. Hugo Petrella has enabled hundreds of young Argentines to participate in the Gothia Cup and is a much loved and known guest in the tournament. All this makes him worthy member of the Gothia Cup Hall of Fame to which he was elected on July 19, 2016.

During 35 years, Adhemar Rocha Filho has been one of our most faithful representatives. In 1980 he organized the first team from Brazil to participate in the tournament. Adhemar has taken thousands of young people from Brazil to the Gothia Cup and is a beloved and well-known guest at the tournament. All this makes Adhemar Rocha Filho a worthy member of the Gothia Cup Hall of Fame to which he was elected July 14, 2015.

For 20 years, Jim Hackett has been one of our most loyal representatives. All the teams that have participated through Jim have shown excellent behavior both on and off the pitch. Jim Hackett has taken thousands of young people from England to the Gothia Cup and is a beloved and well-known guest at the tournament. All this makes Jim Hackett a worthy member of the Gothia Cup Hall of Fame to which he was elected July 14, 2015.

For 20 years, Danny Beamer has been one of our most loyal representatives. All teams who come up with Danny have demonstrated outstanding behavior both on and off the fields. Danny Beamer is a dear guest at the tournament, and the great work he does bringing young people to the Gothia Cup, makes him a worthy member of the Gothia Cup Hall of Fame, to which Danny Beamer was elected on July 15, 2014.

Rolf and Mischa have brought nearly 1000 young footballers from Switzerland over a 30 year period. They have always been good representatives for the Gothia Cup in Switzerland and have always been popular guests in the Gothia Cup. It makes Rolf and Mischa to worthy members of the Gothia Cup Hall of Fame, to which they were elected on July 15, 2014.

Rolando Aguilera was a charismatic personality with a global perspective in his actions. His creation Academia Tahuichi came to have an enormous impact both in Bolivia and abroad. No club has meant more to the development of the Gothia Cup than Tahuichi. Today we elect Rolando Aguilera posthumously in the Gothia Cup Hall of Fame.

During 20 years Sven-Erik Jensen has been one of our most successful agents for the US market. He has given more than 6000 American boys and girls the possibility to attend the Gothia Cup. Sven-Erik Jensen is a dear and well known guest at the tournament and his work to bring young people to the Gothia Cup makes him a worthy member of the Gothia Cup Hall of Fame into which Jensen has been selected on July 16, 2013.

During 23 years Byron Maldonado has visited Gothia Cup with his club La Academia FC. Mr. Maldonado has been responsible for that nearly a thousand young Guatemalans have had the opportunity to participate in our tournament. Byron Maldonado is a respected sports coach who has meant a lot to the development of youth soccer in Guatemala. This makes Byron Maldonado a worthy member of the Gothia Cup Hall of Fame.

During 25 years Karl Otto Lie has been working to make it possible for Norwegian youths to participate in the Gothia Cup. He has helped more than 2000 players from Norway to travel to Gothenburg and participate in the Gothia Cup. Karl Otto Lie is an avid supporter of youth football and his efforts in both Norway and the Gothia Cup makes him a worthy member of the Gothia Cup Hall of Fame.

During 25 years Ed Puskarich has been one of our closest friends in USA. He has given more than 2000 American boys and girls the possibility to attend the Gothia Cup. Ed Puskarich is a dear and well known guest at the tournament and his love for soccer and commitment in youth football makes him a worthy member of the Gothia Cup Hall.

Lars Samuelson introduced the Gothia Cup in the village of Torna Hällestad and after that, hundreds of young people from the region annually had the Gothia Cup that summer’s major destinations. No one was able to communicate the ”football language” like Lars. ”Despite little language skills Lars acquired friends around the world and the famous hat was soon filled with pins from near and far. Lars Samuelsson selected today, 19 July 2011, posthumously in as a most worthy participants in the Gothia Cup Hall of Fame.

During more than 30 years Rinaldo Cometti has been the official representative of the Gothia Cup in Italy. He has given more than 100 Italian teams the possibility to attend the tournament. Cometti is a dear and well known guest at the tournament and his love for football and commitment in youth football makes him a worthy member of the Gothia Cup Hall of Fame into which Commetti has been selected on July 19, 2011.

Mamuka Kvaratskhelia is a person that is living, eating and breathing football. In his home country of Georgia he has done tremendous efforts for the development of football on all levels. At the Gothia Cup we appreciate what he has done for the young players. Year after year Mamuka brings children from Georgia to Sweden for an intercultural experience. Mamuka Kvaratskhelia is a fighter, both off and on the field, who has a strong belief in Fair Play for everyone. Today Mamuka Kvaratskhelia has been selected into the Gothia Cup Hall of Fame.

Tallins, Boriss Dugan has done tremendous efforts for the development of football on youth level in Estonia. At the Gothia Cup we appreciate what he has done for the young players. Year after year Boriss Dugan brings children from Estonia to Sweden for an intercultural experience. Boriss Dugan is a person that has a strong belief in Fair Play for everyone. Something he and his players have showed many times during the Gothia Cup. Today Boriss Dugan has been selected into the Gothia Cup Hall of Fame.

For 23 years, Dante Mandriotti regularly visited the Gothia Cup with his club AD Cantolao. Mr. Mandriotti has been responsible for almost 1000 Peruvian youth had the opportunity to visit the tournament. Dante Mandriotti is a respected and visionary leader with high impact on youth football development in Peru.

Patricia has been to Gothia Cup for more than 28 years. She has been also responsible of the fact that more than one thousand Mexican young footballers have played in Gothia Cup. Patricia carries Gothia very close to her heart and vice versa. These are some of the things that makes Patricia a valuable member of the Gothia Cup Hall of Fame.

During more than 20 years, Paulo Mascarenhas has been working to build the Brazilian wonder in the Gothia Cup. Paulo has throughout the years given more than 10000 young players from Brazil the opportunity to travel to Gothenburg and the Gothia Cup.

Csaba Somfai has been part of Gothia Cup for over 19 years. Csaba has been a role model for young footballers from Kölcsey Gimnazium, showing commitment and humbleness. Csaba’s visionary training methods have been of great success for many of his novice players.

Gerhard has visited Gothia Cup for 28 years, he has helped more than thousand youngsters from TSV Friesen Hänigsen fulfill their dream of playing at Gothia Cup. Gerahrd constitutes the condition for a successful future for international football.

José Guimaraes Junior from Brazil has on July 17, 2007 been elected into the Gothia Cup Hall of Fame. During 20 years Guimaraes has brought more than 1000 young Brazilian football players to Sweden. In Brazil he has used football to give hope and education to the children that have needed it the most. Some of them like Ze Roberto and Julio Baptista, have also become world class players. Guimaraes humble personality and wisdom is an example for all those young people to follow.

Anders Wedel was elected to the Gothia Cup Hall of Fame on July 17 2007. Throughout 30 years Anders has visited Gothia Cup, he has shown great commitment and humbleness towards the thousands of kids from his club Råå IF that have participated in the tournament during this 30 years. Leaders like Anders Wendel constitute the condition for a successful future for Swedish football.

Tomas Lozano from the Philippines has on July 17, 2007 been elected into the Gothia Cup Hall of Fame. During a period of 25 years Tomas Lozano has given more than 1500 young people from the Philippines the opportunity to go abroad and to widen their knowledge about international culture and football. Tomas Lozano as a person is a good example to follow for all those young people.