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Karachi, July 24: Lahore’s Bata Football Club overcame Gujrat’s Al-Zaki Football Club on penalty kicks in the summit clash of Leisure Leagues Punjab Region Small-sided Football Championship at K21 Football Ground in Lahore.
Lahore has now qualified for the Leisure Leagues National Championship, which will be held on July 28 in Karachi. Karachi’s Abdul FC and Gawadar have already qualified for national finals after winning Sindh Region and Balochistan Region Championship’s respectively. A total of four teams from each of the four provinces will compete in the national finals. The line-up for the national finals will be completed when a winner will emerge from KPK Region.
The winner of the national championship will earn a prized ticket to Greece where the team will get a chance to represent Pakistan in the second edition of the Socca World Cup. The tournament will be held in Crete, Greece from October 12 to 20. Last year, Lahore’s ICAW represented Pakistan in the inaugural edition, which was hosted by Portugal in Lisbon.
This time Lahore’s Bata FC is inching towards the prized top national spot, which enables to wear national colors in an exciting world championship abroad.
A total of 16 teams featured in regional qualifiers. Four teams – Lahore (Bata FC), Shakargarh, Multan and Gujrat qualified for semifinals. Lahore defeated Shakargarh 3-1 while Gujrat elbowed out Multan 3-0.
In a nail-biting final, the regulation time ended in a 1-1 draw. Lahore’s Bata FC proved a better side in penalty kicks eventually winning the match 3-0.