UPM sponsors Finland, Uruguay in U-17 Women's WC

UPM will sponsor the Finnish and Uruguayan teams in the FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup scheduled to be held in Uruguay from November 13 to December 1, 2018, said a press release.

For Finland, this is the first time to qualify to the World Cup, whereas Uruguay is playing for the second time in this tournament.

"It takes commitment, professionalism and excellent team play to compete in the world class, be it in sports or business. We want to cheer this new generation of players and believe that their attitude and spirit of fair play will set an inspiring example in their communities," said Pirkko Harrela, Executive Vice President, Stakeholder Relations at UPM.

Victoria Díaz, General Manager of the Uruguayan team said, "For the Uruguayan Football Association it is a real pride that a company of the size of UPM trust us, trust in this sport as a vehicle to educate in values, but above all, trust in this squad of young people who will be our players of the future, representing our women's football in the next month of November. In a society in constant search for equality and opportunities, we firmly believe that women's football is a tool to achieve this and we thank UPM for joining us in this beautiful challenge."

Emma Immonen, goalkeeper of the Finnish team said, "The World Cup is a fantastic opportunity for our team. It shows the results you can achieve with courage and commitment when everyone is working towards the same objective. We are really proud that a company like UPM which invests in responsibility and more sustainable future is supporting us, and has confidence in us - just like we have ourselves."

The Finnish and Uruguayan teams are both playing in Group A, and meet each other on November 20, 2018 in Maldonado.

The FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup Uruguay 2018 will be the first world finals to be held in the country since 1930. There will be 16 teams playing at the tournament for the championship.