Soccer enthusiasts from around the region paid homage to the World War I Christmas Truce on Monday by participating in the fourth annual Truce Tournament held by Sporting Club, the National World War I Museum and Memorial and The Soccer Lot.
Approximately 150 participants from 26 teams in the area competed in a 3v3 soccer tournament, while hundreds of additional soccer fans attended the English Premier League Boxing Day Watch Party on large screens inside the National World War I Museum and Memorial.
The Millennium Pilots from Kansas City, eventually claimed the Truce Tournament title in the competition league by defeating Barilleros 6-3 in the championship match. In the recreation league, Bourbon and Ice Cream with players from Kansas City, Jamaica and England, topped Poor Blighters 5-3 to claim the title.
The Truce Tournament is a tribute to the Christmas Truce of 1914 in which the battles of World War I on the Western and Eastern Fronts temporarily subsided. Members of both sides laid down their arms in a time of war to celebrate a day of peace by venturing out to “No Man’s Land” to exchange gifts, sing carols and play soccer.
Proceeds from the event will benefit The Victory Project in its mission to help kids thrive through life’s challenges as well as the National World War I Museum and Memorial.