Remember me
It’s a full circle moment. Not so long ago, Swedish national team stars Monica Jusu Bah and Felicia Schröder were just youngsters with a dream, taking part in the Gothia Cup, the world's largest international youth football tournament, in Gothenburg, Sweden.
Their connection with the competition has been renewed as they lend their creative skills to the tournament they enjoyed as children by designing a new set of match kits that will be worn at this year’s tournament. It’s players designing for players.
Monica and Felicia are back, not just as role models, but creators shaping the experience for the next generation. Their remit was to design a match kit from their own perspective, driven by personal experiences in football and what it means to dream, compete and represent something bigger than yourself. The intention was not to create a traditional football kit, but something that reflects identity, connection and ambition.
“We got tattoos together as a symbol of our friendship, and we thought this would make a great football shirt for the young players representing SKF and Meet the World in Gothia Cup”
Monica Jusu Bah Ready to Represent
“The idea for the design comes from a personal story,” explains Jusu Bah. “We got tattoos together as a symbol of our friendship, and we thought this would make a great football shirt for the young players representing SKF and Meet the World in Gothia Cup”.
At 23 years old, the winger doesn’t have to think that far back to understand the mindset of the players who will be wearing her match kit. For Schröder, that connection with the 2026 cohort is even closer. At 19, she is just a year older than some of the players who will compete in this year’s Gothia Cup, as players in the tournament range from 11 to 18 years old.
If that wasn’t inspiring enough for this years’ cohort, Schroder signed this summer for Real Madrid, showing what it is possible to achieve in a short period of time.
‘It’s not just a shirt’The record-breaking teenager explains, “The sun and the moon represent our differences but also what brings us together as friends and football players. It is great to share this with other football lovers from around the world.
“We wanted to create something that feels personal, something we would have been proud to wear ourselves when we were younger. It’s not just a shirt. It represents where you come from and where you want to go.
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“We hope the players feel confident and connected when they wear it, like they are part of something bigger. It’s about passing something on. We’ve been in their position, and now we can give something back.”
Dream Big
Designing for the next generation and showing the power that big dreams in football has, and where that can take a person. They have deliberately injected that personal perspective into these designs and the creative process was intuitive and natural rather than technical. These shirts are something they would have wanted to wear when they were younger.
The Gothia Cup is truly an international experience – the world's largest and most intercontinental youth football tournament, it takes place annually in Gothenburg, Sweden where around 1,900 teams from 75 nations take part, playing almost 5,000 matches on 112 pitches.
‘That could be me’
The competition takes youngsters from around the world on a unique journey, providing them with a special opportunity to travel, see a new part of the world and connect with people of their age and build lasting friendships.
A month after the competition, Jusu Bah and Schröder will play in the European playoffs in October that will determine whether or not Sweden will play in the Women’s World Cup in Brazil next year. They are expected to progress.
When players pull on Jusu Bah and Schröder’s special kit in July, they can legitimately think about breaking world records, playing on the biggest stage of all and believe “that could be me”.