On the occasion of the commencement of East Asian Football Championship Preliminary Competition, on behalf of EAFF, I'd like to express my sincerest congratulations and warmest thanks to the Organizing Association : Macau-China FA.

East Asian Football Championship is the highest-leveled competition held by EAFF and has a great reputation in Asia and even all over the world. The Preliminary Competition is a good opportunity for East Asian teams to communicate and promote, to accumulate experiences and exercise the team, to develop and to make improvements. I sincerely hope that all the participants can give their best to make a good performance for the fans. At the same time, I also hope the teams can have a good result and qualify for the final competition to be held in Chongqing, a city as a beautiful and attractive as Macau.

Finally, I sincerely wish this event a round success.

As the East Asian Football Championship 2008 Preliminary Competition is going to be held in June in Macau, I would like to take this opportunity to express our special thank to the East Asian Football Federation for the trust in Macau and it proves that Macau has the ability to organize important events.

Government of Macau SAR always supports the development of sports and the Macau Football Association has been working and fulfilling our duties to develop football in Macau - to organize more football matches, to upgrade the standard of the sport of football and to let Macau citizens enjoy football culture of Asia.

Besides our efforts on organizing this forthcoming East Asian Football Championship 2008 Preliminary Competition, we have to thank the great support from the Macau SAR Government and hope local citizens will give us fervent feedback. Being the host country of this event, I wish all officials from the East Asian Football Federation and all players enjoy the stay in Macau and wish this event a great success.

This summer, in June, all Macau people, with their hearts filled with passion and sincerity, are going to welcome the six joining teams of the East Asian Football Championship 2008 Preliminary Competition. From 17 to 24 June 2007 at the Macau Stadium, Macau citizens have the chance to watch high standard football matches again. The excellent matches that are going to take place will absolutely be an unforgettable memory for the locals as well as football fans from various countries.

After the advanced sports complexes have been built and different kinds of international sports events have taken place, Macau, being one of the cities on the UNESCO's prestigious World Heritage List, is noticed by sportsmen all over the world and is getting more internationally renowned, for its reputable organizing abilities and well-equipped facilities. Organizing important sports events in Macau, not only provides valuable matches for local people to watch, but also assists in the development of tourism, which furthers enhances the implementation of the government policies in the development of sport tourism.

Football is a kind of sports which needs physical fitness, tactic and coordination, and Macau is a heritage city where cultures of east and west meet. I sincerely hope that all participants are going to perform your best during the competitions, and enjoy the charm of Macau after the matches. Last but not least, all the best to the forthcoming event and I wish all the team leaders, coaches, players and all participants have a great time in Macau!

It is so grateful to know that the Macau Football Association is going to host the East Asian Football Championship 2008 Preliminary Competition and six teams which include Hong Kong - China, Chinese Taipei, Guam, DPR Korea, Mongolia and Macau SAR from the East Asian region will join this event. Welcome all the participants to Macau and hope you will have a memorable experience with this heritage city where you can feel the "east meets west " culture.

As various international sports events have been taken place in Macau successfully, sports complexes with advanced equipments have been built. It not only provides more activity spaces, training and competition venues for local citizens, but also makes various sports associations be well-equipped to hold international events. It is believed that with the efforts contributed, football in Macau will be developed more successfully, allowing local citizens with more chances to watch high standard matches for leisure, but to provide chances for local football players to compete with other teams from different countries, and to learn better techniques in order to contribute to the local development of football.

The Macau Football Association has held different international football competitions and is very experienced in organizing matches. With the efforts contributed by all the members of the Association, I am sure that all the teams will enjoy the event and audiences from different countries will enjoy excellent matches.

May I wish all the team leaders, coaches and players for an enjoyable stay in Macau and a fruitful success to this event.