Midlothian teen wins Juventus World Cup for Scotland in dream trip of a lifetime to Italian football giants

A talented teenage footballer from Midlothian was part of the Scotland side that won the Juventus World Cup in Turin last week.

Rio Hamilton-Scott, 13, from Rosewell represented his country as the football academies of the Italian Seria A side from all over the world competed at the club’s training ground to see which country has the most talented youngsters. This was the first time a team representing Scotland had been entered in the tournament, which began and ended with ceremonies at the Allianz Stadium, the home of the Old Lady, which were attended by Juventus legends and the club’s president.

Keen Juventus fan Rio and his teammates played nine games in a week as part of this annual nine-a-side, 20 minutes each way tournament. They took on teams including Nigeria, Poland, Canada, Egypt and Switzerland before defeating Cyprus 3-1 in the final. During their week in Italy the teams stayed at the Olympic Village in Turin and were well looked after by the club.

Rio’s mum, Kerri Hamilton, revealed that the Scots had never met before the tournament, never mind kicked a ball together.

She said: “He is knackered. He was so overwhelmed, he couldn't believe his team won the tournament. He’s buzzing and really happy. He is very proud. It’s put that fire under him. He wants to learn about nutrition and things like that. He just wants to be the best footballer he can possibly be.

"One of the kids he was up against plays for Barcelona. So he knows the level he wants to get to and how to get there now. He is absolutely obsessed with football. When he got back, after 10 minutes of showing off his medal he was straight outside with his football. I’m so proud of him and the team, I’m buzzing too.

"There were 14 players in the Scotland squad, but they hadn’t met before, never mind played together, while other teams have played together for a while. The Scottish boys met for the first time at the airport and were playing together the next day in the tournament.

"His phone hasn’t stopped buzzing since he came home. He has made friends for life with his teammates. Scotland never win anything so this still hasn’t really sunk in yet. I couldn’t believe it when he phoned to tell me they’d won, it was surreal, I was crying! It was just so overwhelming, the whole team was amazing.”

St David’s High School pupil Rio was chosen to represent Juventus’s Scottish football academy in Dundee after impressing coaches when he attended for a week in February – a Christmas present from his dad, Craig Scott. And the Juventus World Cup was an experience he will never forget.

Kerri said: "He really enjoyed being around all the different boys from all the different countries, who all got on great despite some language barriers. Juventus treated them all very well and he said the food was really good, he had a lot of pasta. He said it was one of the best times of his life, although it was a bit surreal. It’s been quite the year for Rio, and this was the best Christmas present he’s ever had! Plus Juventus gave him lots of stuff for free so his room is full of it all now.”

The Juventus World Cup winner is due to sign for Musselburgh Windsor this summer, leaving Dalkeith Thistle. Kerri added: "There is a lot of attention on him, so we are kind of just waiting to see what happens. Apparently he scored an amazing goal against Switzerland and caught the eye. He had a lot of very good feedback and was told to just keep doing what he’s doing.

"Musselburgh Windsor is a great club to go to. Former Hearts assistant manager Billy Brown is there and he is well connected in the game so I think he will help Rio. So we are super excited he is joining them. Rio will hopefully push for pro youth level in a year or two. He is so determined to make it in the game."