by InTrieste
Friuli Venezia Giulia will host the inaugural Friuli Venezia Giulia Cup on Aug. 8, bringing together Italian club Udinese, Spain’s Barcelona and England’s Nottingham Forest for a preseason triangular tournament at Udinese’s Bluenergy Stadium.
The event is being organized through a collaboration between the regional government and Udinese Calcio and is intended to combine top-level football with the promotion of tourism and the region’s international profile.
Regional Governor Massimiliano Fedriga said the tournament reflects the administration’s strategy of using major sporting events to showcase Friuli Venezia Giulia to an international audience. He said the participation of Barcelona and Nottingham Forest, alongside Udinese, is expected to attract significant media attention and visitors from abroad.
Fedriga noted that the region has increasingly hosted international sporting events across a range of disciplines in recent years, adding that the tournament strengthens the long-standing partnership between the regional government and Udinese Calcio while reinforcing Bluenergy Stadium’s role as a venue for high-profile competitions.
The governor also welcomed supporters traveling from the United Kingdom and Catalonia, highlighting the region’s combination of coastal areas, mountains, historic cities and culinary traditions. He said the tournament offers visitors an opportunity to discover Friuli Venezia Giulia and expressed hope that direct flight connections between Trieste Airport and destinations in the United Kingdom and Spain would encourage future tourism beyond the event itself.
