Paris Saint-Germain FC facts for kids
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Full name | Paris Saint-Germain Football Club | ||
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Nickname(s) | Les Parisiens (The Parisians) Les Rouge-et-Bleu (The Red-and-Blues) |
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Short name | PSG, Paris, Paris SG | ||
Founded | 12 August 1970 | ||
Ground | Parc des Princes | ||
Capacity | 47,929 | ||
Owner | Qatar Sports Investments (87.5%) Arctos Partners (12.5%) |
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President | Nasser Al-Khelaifi | ||
Head coach | Luis Enrique | ||
League | Ligue 1 | ||
2021–22 | Ligue 1, 1st of 20 (champions) | ||
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Paris Saint-Germain Football Club, often called Paris Saint-Germain or just PSG, is a professional football club from Paris, France. They play in Ligue 1, which is the top football league in France. PSG is the most successful club in France, having won 54 major trophies. Many people consider them the biggest club in the country.
PSG was started in 1970 when two clubs, Paris FC and Stade Saint-Germain, joined together. They have played in France's top league for more seasons than any other club. PSG is the most popular football club in France and has many fans around the world. Their nicknames are Les Parisiens (The Parisians) and Les Rouge-et-Bleu (The Red-and-Blues), which refer to their team colors. Their club badge shows the Eiffel Tower and a fleur-de-lis. PSG has a big rivalry with Marseille, and their matches are called Le Classique. Since 1974, PSG has played their home games at the Parc des Princes stadium in Paris, which can hold 47,929 fans.
PSG won their first big trophy, the French Cup, in 1982. They won their first league title in 1986. The 1990s were a very successful time for the club. After a difficult period in the 2000s, the team became strong again in 2011. This happened when Qatar Sports Investments took over the club. With a lot of money invested, PSG bought famous players like Zlatan Ibrahimović, Neymar, Kylian Mbappé, and Lionel Messi. This helped them win many league titles and national cups. In 2025, the club won its first UEFA Champions League title, completing a continental treble.
PSG has won 52 trophies in France. This includes a record 13 Ligue 1 titles, one Ligue 2 title, a record 16 French Cups, a record 9 League Cups, and a record 13 Champions Trophies. On the international stage, they won the UEFA Champions League in 2025. They are the second French club to win this title. They were also runners-up in 2020. Other international trophies include the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup in 1996 and the UEFA Intertoto Cup in 2001. PSG is one of only two French clubs to have won a major European title.
Since 2011, PSG has been mostly owned by Qatar Sports Investments (QSI), an investment fund backed by the Qatari government. By 2012, QSI owned 87.5% of the club. An American company called Arctos Partners owns the other 12.5%. PSG is the richest club in France and one of the wealthiest in the world. In January 2025, PSG had the third-highest income in football, earning €806 million, according to Deloitte. They were also the world's seventh most valuable football club, worth $4.4 billion, according to Forbes magazine.
Contents
Club History

Paris Saint-Germain was formed in 1970 by combining Paris FC and Stade Saint-Germain. PSG quickly made an impact, winning Ligue 2 and moving up to Ligue 1 in their first season. However, the club split in 1972. Paris FC stayed in the top league, while PSG went down to Division 3. After two more promotions, PSG returned to the top league in 1974 and started playing at the Parc des Princes.
The club won its first trophies in the 1980s. With players like Safet Sušić, Luis Fernandez, and Dominique Rocheteau, PSG won the Coupe de France in 1982 and 1983. They also won their first Ligue 1 title in 1986. After a tough period, Canal+ took over the club in 1991, which helped PSG become strong again. Led by players like David Ginola, George Weah, and Raí, the club won nine trophies and reached five European semi-finals in the 1990s. PSG won their second league title in 1994 and the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup in 1996, with Luis Fernandez as manager.
In the early 2000s, PSG struggled to get back to the top, even with talented players like Ronaldinho and Pauleta. They won five more trophies: three French Cups, one League Cup, and one UEFA Intertoto Cup. But PSG was often in difficult situations. Canal+ sold the club to Colony Capital in 2006. However, things got worse, and PSG spent the next two seasons trying to avoid being relegated.
The club's luck changed a lot when Qatar Sports Investments became the owners in 2011. Since then, PSG has spent a lot of money on world-class players like Zlatan Ibrahimović, Lionel Messi, Neymar, and Kylian Mbappé. Neymar and Mbappé were among the most expensive transfers in football history. Because of this, PSG has been very dominant in French football, winning 37 trophies. This includes eleven league titles, eight French Cups, six League Cups, and eleven Champions Trophies. They have also regularly reached the knockout stages of the UEFA Champions League. They reached the final for the first time in 2020 and won their first title in 2025.
Club Identity
Colors and Mascot
Since it was founded, Paris Saint-Germain has represented both the city of Paris and the nearby royal town of Saint-Germain-en-Laye. This is why red, blue, and white are the club's traditional colors. Red and blue are the colors of Paris, honoring important historical figures. White represents French royalty and Saint-Germain-en-Laye.
On the club's badge, the red Eiffel Tower on a blue background stands for Paris. The white fleur de lys below it refers to the coat of arms of Saint-Germain-en-Laye. The fleur de lys is also a royal symbol, reminding us that French King Louis XIV was born in the town. PSG has had several badges over the years, but all of them have used these three historical colors.
The club's most famous shirts have been mainly red, blue, or white, with the other two colors also included. Germain the Lynx, PSG's official mascot, also wears the club's traditional colors. He was introduced in 2010 to celebrate the club's 40th anniversary. You can see him entertaining kids at the Parc des Princes stadium.
Anthems and Mottos
"Allez Paris!", sung by Annie Cordy in 1971, was the club's first official song. The club's second song, "Allez Paris-Saint-Germain!" by Les Parisiens, was recorded in 1977. A new version of this song was made in 2010 for the club's 40th anniversary. It uses the tune of "Go West" by the Village People, and fans helped write the new words. This is the club's current official song.
"Ô Ville Lumière" is another popular song for PSG fans. Other well-known chants include "Le Parc est à nous" ("The Parc is ours"), "Ici, c'est Paris" ("This is Paris"), and "Paris est magique" ("Paris is magical"). "Who Said I Would" by Phill Collins has been played when players enter the field since 1992.
"Ici, c'est Paris" and "Paris est magique" are also the club's most famous sayings. "Ici, c'est Paris" was created by a fan group called Supras Auteuil. After some discussions, the club and the fans agreed that the club could use the slogan for marketing, and fans could still use it freely.
Iconic Shirts
For its first three seasons, Paris Saint-Germain's home shirt was red with blue and white details. This was to show all three club colors: red and blue for Paris and white for Saint-Germain-en-Laye. In the 2010–11 season, PSG wore a red home shirt to celebrate its 40th anniversary. In 1973, French fashion designer Daniel Hechter became PSG's president. He designed the club's classic home kit that same year: a blue shirt with a red stripe in the middle, surrounded by two thinner white stripes.
This "Hechter shirt" was first worn in the 1973–74 season and has been PSG's classic look ever since. It was first used in a match against Red Star in November 1973. This was also PSG's first game at the Parc des Princes. Famous PSG players from the 1990s and 2000s, like Raí, Ronaldinho, and Pauleta, are known for wearing this kit. In this shirt, the club reached five European semi-finals between 1993 and 1997. They also won the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup in 1996 and had eight wins in a row against their rivals Marseille between 2002 and 2004.
Many believe Hechter based his design on the red and white jersey of Ajax, a very strong European team at the time. However, Hechter said he was inspired by the Ford Mustang car. He put the car's hood stripes onto the jersey and used the three club colors. There are two other versions of Hechter's jersey: the "Reverse Hechter" (red-white-blue-white-red), which started in the 1974–75 season, and the "White Hechter" (white-blue-red-blue-white), which first appeared in the 1994–95 season.
However, PSG's first great team, which won their first Coupe de France titles in 1982 and 1983, and their first Ligue 1 title in 1986, wore a different kit. This shirt was white with blue and red vertical stripes on the left side. It started as the away kit in the 1973–74 season. PSG president Francis Borelli made this white shirt the club's main home identity from 1981 to 1990. Now called the "Borelli shirt," it is linked to PSG legends of the 1980s like Safet Sušić, Luis Fernández, and Dominique Bathenay.
Crest Evolution
The club's first badge was similar to the original Paris FC (PFC) logo. When PSG was formed by merging with Stade Saint-Germain, the PFC badge kept its design. But the name changed to "Paris Saint-Germain Football Club." This badge had a blue football with a red ship inside it. The ship is an old symbol of Paris and is on the city's coat of arms. The club's name was written below in red.
After separating from PFC in 1972, PSG needed a new badge. The club's second badge became the basis for the one fans know today. It showed the Eiffel Tower in red on a blue background. Below it were two symbols of Saint-Germain in white: a fleur de lys and Louis XIV's cradle. This badge was first used in 1972 and lasted until 1992.
In 1992, Canal+, the club's owner, changed the badge a lot. The new design had the letters "PSG" in white on a blue-white-red-white-blue background. "Paris Saint-Germain" was written below in white on a black background. Because fans wanted it, the traditional badge returned in 1995. It had "Paris Saint-Germain" above the tower and "1970" below the cradle. In 2002, it was slightly updated with a darker blue.
In 2013, the club's Qatari owners asked for a big change to the traditional badge. Now, "Paris" is written in large, bold white letters above a big Eiffel Tower. This clearly shows the "Paris" brand more than "Paris Saint-Germain." Below it, "Saint-Germain" is written in smaller letters under the fleur de lys. The cradle and the club's founding year, "1970," were removed. PSG's deputy general manager, Jean-Claude Blanc, said: "We are called Paris Saint-Germain but, most importantly, we are called Paris."
Home Grounds
Stadiums
Since it started, Paris Saint-Germain has played in five main stadiums. These are the Stade Jean-Bouin, the Stade Georges Lefèvre, the Stade Bauer, the Stade Yves-du-Manoir, and the Parc des Princes. The Parc des Princes is their current home. PSG played their first match at the Parc des Princes on November 10, 1973, against Red Star. PSG moved into the stadium in July 1974 when they returned to Ligue 1.
Since then, the Parc des Princes has been PSG's home stadium. In the 2019–20 season, an average of 47,517 fans came to each match. The record for most fans at a PSG match was on March 13, 1983, with 49,575 people. This match was against Waterschei in the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup quarterfinals, which PSG won 2–0.
In the 1970–71 season, the club played at the Stade Jean-Bouin and the Stade Georges Lefèvre. The Jean-Bouin was preferred because it attracted more fans. The Georges Lefèvre also hosted PSG matches from 1972 to 1974. Between 1904 and 1970, it was the home of Stade Saint-Germain, which merged to form PSG. PSG also played at the Jean-Bouin in 1973–74, sharing games with the Georges Lefèvre and the Parc des Princes.
PSG first played at the Stade de Paris (now Stade Bauer) in the 1971–72 season. They used it again in 1976–77, 1977–78, and twice in 1978–79 because of work on the Parc des Princes field. Similarly, the Stade Olympique Yves-du-Manoir hosted PSG for three matches in 1971–72, once in 1974–75, and one last time in 1975–76 due to renovations at the Parc des Princes.
Training Facilities
Campus PSG has been the club's training ground since July 2023. It is located in Poissy and replaced the Camp des Loges, PSG's old training facility. The club owns and paid for Campus PSG. It brings together PSG's male and female football, handball, and judo teams, as well as their academies. Each team has its own special facilities. Campus PSG will also have a stadium, which will be built after 2024. PSG's male team moved to Campus PSG on July 10, 2023. They had their first group training session there on July 18, 2023, and played their first game on July 21, 2023. It was a friendly match against Le Havre, which PSG won 2–0.
The Camp des Loges is a training ground in Saint-Germain-en-Laye. It was home to PSG's male team from July 1970 to June 2023. The club's academy also started there on November 4, 1975. The current Camp des Loges opened in November 2008. It was renamed Ooredoo Training Centre in September 2013 as part of a sponsorship deal. The complex hosted the club's female team training between June 2023 and January 2024. The men's team left Camp des Loges for Campus PSG in July 2023. The club's academy and female team moved to the new site in January 2024. The Rugby union club Stade Français is expected to use the Camp des Loges starting in the summer of 2024.
Club Statistics
Records and Achievements
Paris Saint-Germain holds many records. They are the most successful French club ever with 55 official titles. They hold the record for most wins in all French competitions. This includes 13 Ligue 1 titles, 16 French Cups, nine League Cups, and 13 Champions Trophies. They also won one Ligue 2 title.
Internationally, PSG has won one UEFA Champions League, one UEFA Cup Winners' Cup, and one UEFA Intertoto Cup. These wins make PSG one of only two French teams to have won a major European competition. They are also the only French team to win the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup and the first to win a continental treble. Paris was also runner-up in the 1996 UEFA Super Cup, the 1996–97 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup, the 2019–20 UEFA Champions League, and the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup.
PSG has played the most consecutive seasons in the top league (51 seasons in Ligue 1 since 1974–75). They are the only team to win the Ligue 1 title while leading the table from the first to the last game (in 2022–23). They also won the Coupe de France without letting in any goals (in 1992–93 and 2016–17). They won five Coupe de la Ligue in a row (2014–2018), four Coupe de France in a row (2015–2018), and eight Trophée des Champions in a row (2013–2020).
Important people in the club's history include president Nasser Al-Khelaifi (who has won the most trophies), manager Laurent Blanc (who has won the most trophies), Marquinhos (who has played the most games), Kylian Mbappé (the top scorer), Ángel Di María (who has made the most assists), Bernard Lama (who has the most clean sheets), Thiago Silva (the longest-serving captain), Ballon d'Or winners George Weah and Lionel Messi, and Neymar (a world-record transfer).
Seasons Played
Paris Saint-Germain has played 55 seasons in total. 52 of these seasons have been in the top division of French football, Ligue 1. For the other three seasons, the club played twice in the second division (Ligue 2) and once in the third division (Division 3). In the 2024–25 season, PSG celebrated their 51st season in a row in Ligue 1, making them the club that has been in the competition the longest. The club played its first official match on August 23, 1970. They drew 1–1 away to Poitiers in the first game of Ligue 2. PSG won the Ligue 2 title that season and moved up to the top league. The Parisians played their first Ligue 1 game on August 11, 1971, losing 2–0 away to Angers. The club then split in June 1972, with Paris FC staying in Ligue 1 and PSG being moved down to Division 3.
After two promotions, PSG returned to Ligue 1 in the 1974–75 season and has stayed there ever since. Since then, the club has won a record thirteen league titles, finishing first more often than any other position. They have finished second nine times. PSG has been in the top two places 22 times. They have also been in the top five 30 times, which is more than half of their seasons in Ligue 1. PSG's lowest finish ever was 16th place, which happened in both the 1971–72 and 2007–08 seasons. In 2007–08, they avoided being relegated on the last day with a 2–1 win at Sochaux.
PSG had their best season ever in the 2024–25 campaign. They played a record 65 matches. They became the first French club to win the continental treble, winning their first UEFA Champions League title, the league championship, and the Coupe de France. They also had a record average crowd of 47,639 fans per home league game. The club also set several records in the 2015–16 season. PSG earned 96 points, their highest total in Ligue 1, and only let in 19 goals. They won 47 matches in all competitions. Zlatan Ibrahimović scored 50 goals that season, which was the most by a player in a single season for the club. Other notable records include letting in only 28 goals in the 1993–94 season and scoring 171 goals in the 2017–18 season.
International Football
Paris Saint-Germain is the most successful French club in international competitions. They have won three titles: the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup in 1996, the UEFA Intertoto Cup in 2001, and the UEFA Champions League in 2025. These wins make PSG one of only two French teams to have won a major European tournament. They are also the only French team to have won the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup and the first to win a continental treble. Paris was runner-up in the 1996 UEFA Super Cup, the 1996–97 UEFA Cup Winners' Cup, the 2019–20 UEFA Champions League, and the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup.

The Parisians played their first international match in the 1982–83 season. They qualified for the now-closed Cup Winners' Cup because they won the Coupe de France. PSG's first match was against Lokomotiv Sofia. They reached the quarter-finals, where they were knocked out by Waterschei Thor. They then played in the UEFA Europa League in the 1984–85 season. After that, they played in Europe's top club competition, the Champions League, in the 1986–87 season.
Between 1992 and 1997, the club reached five semi-finals in a row. This included three in the Cup Winners' Cup, one in the Champions League, and one in the Europa League. They won their first European trophy in 1996, beating Rapid Wien in the Cup Winners' Cup final. This win allowed Paris to play in the 1996 UEFA Super Cup, where they lost to Juventus. They reached a second Cup Winners' Cup final in a row in 1997, but lost to Barcelona. PSG played in the now-closed Intertoto Cup once, in 2001. They won their second European trophy against Brescia in the final.
PSG had to wait 19 years to reach another final. With many star players like Zlatan Ibrahimović, Neymar, Kylian Mbappé, and Lionel Messi, the club has qualified for UEFA competitions every season since 2010–11. They reached their first Champions League final in 2020, where they lost closely to Bayern Munich. Luis Fernandez was the only manager to win European trophies with Paris until Luis Enrique led them to their first Champions League title in 2025.
Club Supporters
Paris Saint-Germain is the most popular football club in France, with 22% of the country's football fans. With about 35 million fans, PSG is also one of the most followed teams in the world. The Parc des Princes has been their home stadium since July 1974. It has four main sections for fans: Tribune Auteuil, Tribune Paris, Tribune Borelli, and Tribune Boulogne. Historically, the Auteuil and Boulogne sections, known as the Virage Auteuil (VA) and the Kop of Boulogne (KoB), have been home to PSG's most loyal fans, called ultras. This made the Parc a very exciting place to play. Other friendly, family-focused groups have gathered in the Paris and Borelli stands, including the club's first fan group, Les Amis du PSG, started in 1975.
Because the club didn't have a large and passionate fan base, they started offering cheaper season tickets to young fans in 1976. These fans sat in Kop K, a section in the Paris stand. When ticket prices went up, fans in Kop K moved to the Boulogne stand in 1978, and the Kop of Boulogne was formed. The club's first Italian-style ultra group, the Boulogne Boys, started there in 1985. However, some KoB groups started acting like English hooligans, and violence increased.
To fix this, the club's owners, Canal+, encouraged non-violent KoB fans to gather at the other end of the stadium. This led to the creation of the Virage Auteuil in 1991, led by ultra groups like Supras Auteuil. This plan worked at first, but a violent rivalry slowly grew between the two stands. The situation became very bad in 2010 before a match against Marseille. A Boulogne fan named Yann Lorence was killed after a fight between groups from both stands outside the Parc. This forced PSG president Robin Leproux to take action. In what was called the Plan Leproux, the club banned all fan groups from the Parc and from away matches. It took six years for the ultras to return to the stadium. Former VA supporters formed the Collectif Ultras Paris (CUP) in May 2016, and the club allowed them to return in October 2016.
PSG has officially recognized 16 fan groups at the Parc des Princes since 1975. The CUP, based in Auteuil, is currently the only officially recognized ultra group by the club. They share the stadium with other authorized groups like Hoolicool, Vikings 27, and Handicap PSG in the Paris stand. Also, Les Amis du PSG, Titi Fosi, and PSG Grand Sud are in the Borelli stand.
Club Rivalries
Le Classique
Paris Saint-Germain has a strong rivalry with Olympique de Marseille. Matches between these two teams are called Le Classique. These clubs are the two most successful clubs in French football. They are also the only French teams to have won major European trophies. Because of this, their matches are the biggest rivalry in France.
PSG and OM were the top teams before Olympique Lyonnais became strong in the 2000s. They are also the most followed French teams around the world. Both clubs have many fans attending their games each season. Their early matches in the 1970s did not show that they would become big rivals. PSG was a new club trying to build a strong team, while OM was already a top contender in Ligue 1.
The rivalry truly began in 1986 when PSG won their first championship. At the same time, Bernard Tapie bought OM. By the end of the 1980s, PSG was competing for the 1988–89 title against Tapie's Marseille. PSG president Francis Borelli accused Tapie and OM of fixing matches that season, which made their rivalry even stronger.
In the 1990s, the tension between the two teams grew. The French TV channel Canal+ bought PSG in 1991. Their goal was to end Marseille's dominance. Canal+ then agreed with Tapie to make the rivalry even bigger to promote the league. With similar financial support, PSG and OM became the main teams fighting for the league title. Both teams were less successful in the late 1990s and 2000s, but the rivalry stayed strong. Since the 2010s, PSG has dominated these matches. The large investments from their Qatari owners have created a big difference between the two clubs.
Ownership and Finances
Paris Saint-Germain was first owned by its fans, with 20,000 members. The club was run by board members Guy Crescent, Pierre-Étienne Guyot, and Henri Patrelle. A group of rich French businessmen, led by Daniel Hechter and Francis Borelli, then bought the club in 1973. PSG changed owners again in 1991 when Canal+ took over. Then, in 2006, Colony Capital became the owner. Qatar Sports Investments (QSI) has been the main owner of PSG since 2011. By 2012, they owned 87.5% of the shares. Arctos Partners owns the remaining 12.5%.
QSI, which is supported by the Qatari government, bought most of the club in 2011 and became the sole owner in 2012. This means PSG is a state-owned club, making them one of the richest teams in the world. In 2023, Arctos Partners bought a smaller share in the club. Nasser Al-Khelaifi, the chairman of QSI, has been PSG president since the takeover. However, Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, the Emir of Qatar, makes the final decisions for the club. He is both the chairman of the QIA and the founder of QSI.
When QSI arrived, they promised to build a team that could win the UEFA Champions League. PSG has spent over €1.9 billion on buying players since the summer of 2011. These huge expenses have helped PSG dominate French football. However, they have also caused issues with UEFA's Financial Fair Play rules.
In January 2025, PSG had the third-highest income in football with €806 million in yearly earnings, according to Deloitte. They were also the world's seventh-most valuable football club, worth $4.4 billion, according to Forbes magazine. This financial growth has been supported by PSG's Qatari owners, the team's success on the field, signing famous players like Zlatan Ibrahimović, Neymar, Kylian Mbappé, and Lionel Messi, and profitable sponsorship deals with the Qatar Tourism Authority, Nike, Air Jordan, Accor, and Qatar Airways.
Club Honours
Type | Competitions | Titles | Seasons |
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Domestic | Ligue 1 | 13 | 1985–86, 1993–94, 2012–13, 2013–14, 2014–15, 2015–16, 2017–18, 2018–19, 2019–20, 2021–22, 2022–23, 2023–24, 2024–25 |
Ligue 2 | 1 | 1970–71 | |
Coupe de France | 16 | 1981–82, 1982–83, 1992–93, 1994–95, 1997–98, 2003–04, 2005–06, 2009–10, 2014–15, 2015–16, 2016–17, 2017–18, 2019–20, 2020–21, 2023–24, 2024–25 | |
Coupe de la Ligue | 9 | 1994–95, 1997–98, 2007–08, 2013–14, 2014–15, 2015–16, 2016–17, 2017–18, 2019–20 | |
Trophée des Champions | 13 | 1995, 1998, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2022, 2023, 2024 | |
Continental | UEFA Champions League | 1 | 2024–25 |
UEFA Cup Winners' Cup | 1 | 1995–96 | |
UEFA Intertoto Cup | 1 | 2001 |
Players
Current Squad
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Players on Loan
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Other Players Under Contract
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Club Personnel
Management Team
Coaching Staff
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Psychologist | ![]() |
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See also
In Spanish: Paris Saint-Germain Football Club para niños