Adipi: “Robinhood is proud to be back in the Champions Cup”

MIAMI, Florida – It is a proud moment in time for one of the most accomplished Caribbean teams in Concacaf history.

Five-time Concacaf Champions Cup finalists Robinhood of Suriname are back in the Champions Cup for the first time since 1994 and will be making their 18^th appearance overall in the tournament.

Thirty years since their last participation, a new generation of Robinhood players are looking to carve out a legacy of their own, and they are led by MF Renske Adipi.  The 24-year-old steered Robinhood to the mountaintop in both the 2023 Concacaf Caribbean Club Shield and the 2023 Concacaf Caribbean Cup, earning the distinction of Best Player in the Caribbean Cup.

Adipi scored a goal, contributed an assist, made eight steals, three clearances and completed more than 83 percent of his passes in the tournament.

This week Adipi and Robinhood returned to training following a well-deserved two-week vacation and are busy preparing for the 2024 Champions Cup.

“This is a team with a lot of young players, but we trained hard, the coach worked very hard with us so we could reach a level at which we could compete in the Shield and the Caribbean Cup,” said Adipi in an interview with Concacaf.com. “For Robinhood as a team, it means that we are back at the level we had in previous years in the 1970s, 80s and 90s. We are very proud to be back at the international Concacaf level and proud to be back in Champions Cup,” added Adipi.

As Caribbean Cup champions, Robinhood will start the tournament in the Round of 16 and will await the winner of the Round One series between Herediano of Costa Rica and two-time Concacaf champions Toluca of Mexico.

While the Robinhood players are just now returning to the training field, the coaching staff has already been studying the club’s potential opponent.

“Our coaching staff is already busy analyzing Toluca and Herediano, so we will be prepared for whichever team we play,” said Adipi.

2023 will forever live in Robinhood lore for their impressive double of winning the Shield and the Caribbean Cup. The team began to register big wins in the Shield, and that momentum took them all the way to the Caribbean Cup title.

“At the start of the Shield, we were a little nervous, but when the tournament started after the first game, we grew into ourselves and grew in the tournament and we became champions. When we entered the Caribbean Cup, we were surer of ourselves. We played a good tournament and also became champions of that event.

“For the fans they enjoyed it very much and they have not stopped celebrating it. They were great fans in the games, even though it was late at night!” said Adipi with a smile.

Robinhood’s Caribbean conquest and Champions Cup qualification was timely, too. On the horizon is the beginning of a new professional league in Suriname, so no doubt Robinhood’s appearance in this year’s Champions Cup will bring plenty of eyes to Surinamese football.

“We know that not only are we playing for Robinhood, but we are also playing for the country of Suriname. It is a very important moment so that Robinhood can have prestige in this tournament, because we are going to start a professional league in Suriname. This is a welcomed moment that everyone can now see the level that Surinamese football has,” concluded Adipi.