SPECTACULAR AWARDS CEREMONY OF THE FA OF SERBIA | "GOLDEN BALL" TO DRAGAN STOJKOVIĆ, ALEKSANDAR MITROVIĆ AND VIOLETA SLOVIĆ

In a year that deserves the prefix historical, it was organized a spectacular awards ceremony for the best individuals. In front of the football elite of Serbia, in one of the crystal rooms of the “Hyatt” hotel, numerous distinguished guests from the world of culture and sports, The Ministry of Sports and the Olympic Committee of Serbia, the Football Association of Serbia presented the awards to the best individuals of the year, coach, football players in men and women’s football. The President of the FA of Serbia Dragan Džajić greeted the attendees in the introductory part.

“The year we have been waiting for more than two decades is behind us, the year in which we achieved what was marked as a priority on the day I became president of the Football Association. Serbia is returning to the map of the best teams in Europe after 24 years, and due to that reason I would like to express the gratitude to the players and technical staff of the national team for the achieved qualification and to wish them much success in the final tournament of the European Championship in Germany. We must not stop and tell ourselves that we are satisfied with what has been achieved. There is not yesterday in football, only today and tomorrow. Therefore, there are many challenges ahead of us that we must respond to in the right way.

I believe that no one remembers that Serbia got three new, magnificent stadiums in one year. We would like to express gratitude to the Country for help, and understanding, especially since this is just the beginning of the infrastructural revolution that will include many cities in Serbia. After Leskovac, Loznica and Zaječar, it is the turn of Niš, Novi Sad, Kragujevac, as well as Belgrade with the National Stadium. It is quite certain that we will have something to be proud of.

Therefore, there are many wishes, ideas, plans, obligations. We look at the past, and we see the future, and to conclude, we will definitely remember this year for good things, first of all for the success in qualifying for the UEFA European Championship, but we are aware that new, important exams await us very soon, both on the field and off it. With congratulations to our laureates for the awards they absolutely deserved, I would like to wish all of you and your families good health and success,” said Dragan Džajić.

The awards ceremony continued as Violeta Slović received the “Golden Ball” , it was handed over by Miroslav Tanjga, Director of the Sports Sector of the FA of Serbia. This was followed by a film about the achievements of the best football player Aleksandar Mitrović, who expressed his gratitude for the recognition via a video link. The award for the best football player was presented, in the absence of Aleksandar Mitrović, to his father Ivica, and the “Golden Ball” was handed over by Stevan Stojanović, Head of the “A” National Team. Finally, the award for the best coach was handed over to Dragan Stojković by Stanislav Karasi, President of the Experts Committee of the FA of Serbia