Freedom QJ League Family Fest: Sports games, live band, western Derby and concert of INDI

In April 2023, the QJ League kicked off with a grand opening match. The next major Matchday took place on July 1 in Atyrau as part of the western derby between the teams Atyrau and Aktobe was held the Freedom QJ League Family Fest.

 

Fans began to gather on the square in front of the stadium already three hours before the start of the game, where various entertainment activities awaited them. Among them: table football, snookball, windball, as well as an area with game consoles where you could play FIFA 23 football simulator and other games.

 

The guests were entertained with live music by live-band Dynamica, animators, and various gifts were raffled off.

 

The headliner of the festival was the star of Kazakhstan pop music – Indira INDI Yedilbayeva, who performed during the half time of the match.

 

As for the match itself, it was in no way inferior to the activities before the game. The game was really tense. The match was broadcast live by the Qazsport and QSport sports TV channels and was also available on the QJ League YouTube channel with comments in two languages.

 

The outcome of the meeting was decided by one goal scored in stoppage time. Daryn Ospan brought victory to Aktobe – 0:1.

 

After the match, prizes were drawn from QJ League partners of the Kazakhstan Football Federation, Freedom Mobile and FC Atyrau. The lucky ones went home with a brand new jersey of the national team of Kazakhstan, a game jersey of the best player of the Atyrau team Nsungusi Effiong, as well as iPhone 14 and Xiaomi mi Band 6.

 

President of the QJ League Rokhus Shokh: «QJ League is a revolution in Kazakhstani football, our boys participate in the tournament, which is organized at a 100% professional level.

 

We managed to hold a grand opening match, and now we have arrived in Atyrau, I think the Matchday event was successfull. Pre-match events, prize draws, the performance of a famous singer, everything was held at a high level. And the fan confirms this, more than 3,000 people in the stands, this has never happened in youth football in the regions.

 

I am sure that the QJ League will become a kind of trigger for the entire Kazakhstani football and will help its development».

 

Aktobe head coach Maxim Gabunov: «I think the game was equal, we were just a little more lucky, the goalkeeper pulled out a penalty well, in the end we managed to score, I am very happy with the victory. Atyrau is a very good opponent, it has always been difficult to play here, I think we succeeded in the western derby, there are a lot of fans, it’s nice to play, excellent organization of the match, everything is fine!»

 

Atyrau head coach Valery Nesterenko: «I think the derby was successful, both teams had a good game, we lost concentration a little at the end and conceded a goal. In the second half there was a period when we had the advantage, unfortunately we couldn't score a goal and didn't score a penalty. Well, I want to say thank you to the fans, they created an incredible atmosphere! QJ League raises the bar every time, the organization of the match is at a high level, many thanks to them and success in the future, I hope the league will last for many years!»

 

The author of the winning goal Daryn Ospan: «It was a very difficult game, Atyrau fans were like the 12th player and put pressure on us. But thank God we managed to win. Everything was at a high level, it's nice that the Kazakh pop star Indira Yedilbayeva performed in half time».

 

Atyrau goalkeeper Darkhan Zhumakhanov: «It was an exciting game, thanks to the fans for their support. Separately, I want to thank the QJ League for the organization, we feel like professional football players. As for the game, we lost concentration and luck, we couldn’t score our goal».