European Open Championship have started

On Monday morning, the parallel tournament, the European Open Championship for girls aged 16, began.

Alongside the Partille World Cup, another tournament has been running since 2005: the European Open Championship. On Monday, the national team tournament began with Iceland facing Croatia at Valhalla, and in the adjacent hall, Spain against Romania.

The European Open Championship is a tournament for 16-year-old national team players, held annually alongside the Partille World Cup. For 19 years, the tournament has been held in Gothenburg. Last year featured boys' teams, and this year it's the girls' turn. A total of 20 nations from across Europe are competing for the 2024 title.

At 10 o'clock on Monday, the first matches for Spain, Romania, Iceland, and Croatia kicked off. Romania scored the first goal in their match against Spain, starting the tournament with cheers from their Romanian fans. Meanwhile, Iceland's presence in the adjacent hall with their jingling bells and supportive chants couldn't be missed.

Iceland played from behind until the final minutes of their match. The closely contested game between Iceland and Croatia ended 17-17, leaving an Icelandic player satisfied right after the match.

"It was a really fun and exciting match. We were down by 3 at first, but we came back and it feels really good," says Virgdís Arna Hjartadóttir with a big smile and flushed cheeks.

Don't miss the chance to follow some of Europe's best youth national teams from July 1-5. Matches will be played at Valhalla Sports Hall, Lundenhallen, and Scandinavium throughout the week. You can find the schedule in the Partille World Cup app.