(KPL) Lanexang United FC, a local football team, will represent the Lao PDR at the Toyota Mekong Club Championship (TMCC) 2016.

Toyota made the announcement on October 5 after the Lanexang United FC was crowned champion of the 2016 Lao Premier League beating the other fourteen football teams.

Toyota Motor Thailand has given 10 million kip in support to the Lanexang United FC as the representative team of Lao PDR at the Toyota Mekong Club Championship 2016.

“Congratulations go to the Lanexang United FC and Toyota is pleased that the team will represent Laos at the Toyota Mekong Club Championship this year. We are looking forward to watching their best play at the Toyota Mekong Club Championship 2016,” said General Manager of the representative office of Toyota Motor Thailand, Mr. Sahachat Kangsasitiam.

 “Toyota strongly supports, and is committed to nurturing these athletes through its Toyota Mekong Football Project. Since this is the third year of Toyota Mekong Club Championship, we expect even more people in Laos to enjoy the tournament.”

 Three matches among Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam will be held as part of the first round which will begin on 5th November. Laos is going to play in Laos on 5 November and in Myanmar on 27 December.

The winner of the first round will face off against Cambodia in the semi-finals. The winner will then go up against Thailand in the finals to vie for the 2016 Toyota Mekong Club Championship title. The total tournament prize money will be US$173,000.

 The Toyota Mekong Club Championship is a football tournament among champions from Mekong countries initiated by Toyota Motor Asia Pacific in 2014 under the Toyota Mekong Football Project. It was started to combine the passion and energy of football with Toyota’s constant pursuit to bring ‘ever-better’ cars to customers. Bringing sustainable, innovative and exciting solutions to every country has been a key focus for Toyota.

This year, the aim is to go beyond delivering ever-better cars and become a ‘Best Partner’ together with the communities of Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar, Thailand and Vietnam, making football accessible to aspiring athletes and football fans of all ages.

Toyota has over 200 initiatives that strengthen local communities in the pillars of education, the environment, road safety, arts and culture, healthcare, community services and sports. Some examples of our initiatives across the region include the Toyota Scholarship programme for students from elementary to university levels, reforestation projects including the planting over three million seedlings at production locations, forests and parks. In Thailand and Vietnam, we have been conducting the Toyota Football Clinics where over 4,000 youth have been taught football skills and around 50 promising athletes have been given the opportunity to play in Japan against junior teams of the Japan Professional Football League.

KPL