Shaun Goater hopes to discover Bermuda's next soccer hero by the end of a star-studded festival of football that the Manchester City striker is staging this summer, The Royal Gazette can reveal.

The Maine Road cult hero has pulled out all the stops to bring his inaugural Grassroots Soccer Festival to the Island in June.

As well as his own presence, Goater will be also be joined by the City Academy's Under-17 team, their coaching staff and teammate and former French international Nicolas Anelka for the event, the primary sponsor of which is XL Capital.

The event will be open to soccer fans from the age of six upwards and will run from June 2 to 8 at three schools and the National Sports Centre.

Along with soccer skills courses, it will also feature matches between the City side and both a Bermuda national team and a select team.

The climax on the Island's famous 'carpet' will see the final of the Soccer Skills Challenge, a 'Past Masters' tournament for the Shaun Goater Trophy and will culminate with 24 of Bermuda's best youngsters, selected by a panel including representatives from the Bermuda Football Association, the City Academy and Goater, playing for the Goater Select XI against a City Select XI.

It is hoped that with the Blues' top coaches at the games, one of the Island's players may impress enough to be offered a trial with the English Premiership club.

"There's a chance that one kid could come through and go on to better my achievements," said Goater.

"If a player does well enough to impress it is absolutely nothing for a club to have a kid go to England for two or three weeks and have a trial.

"Clubs nowadays set up schools around the world, Manchester United have schools in Africa for example, where they have first preference for a player coming out of that country.

"If City want first preference for a player coming out of Bermuda I don't think the BFA or the clubs will argue about it."

Although that would be the icing on the cake for Goater, his main goal is to ensure kids of both sexes and all abilities, including the disadvantaged, have fun in the short term and that the standard of Bermudian soccer is improved in the long term.

"I never thought it would develop into something this big but I am pleased for the people of Bermuda, the players who will have the opportunity and all the kids. What is coming will truly be a really great week of football," he said. "This event will raise a few eyebrows and people will think it's good for the kids, something they can look forward to and enjoy.

"I like to think of it as like going to a fair. You might not be good at shooting baskets, but you have a go. That's the idea behind it."

Goater went on: "I hope this can raise the profile of football in Bermuda, kick start us and help to get our attitudes right.

"I want people to say 'yes, we are amateur but let's tidy up our programmes a bit'. By bringing some attention to it, who knows what will happen?"

Anelka's involvement is a significant gesture on the player's part.

"I found out he is in Miami and I asked him if he would like to come to Bermuda for a couple of days and he was up for it," said Goater. "It's not something that happens very often."

It is hoped the club's top goalscorer this season will attend a gala barbecue on the Friday night, an event at which many of the Island's dignitaries will be at and at which shirts signed by Goater, Anelka and Premiership giants Liverpool, Manchester United and Arsenal will be auctioned off.

Goater said he was sure the event would be a success and he hoped other top English sides would send their players over in the future.

"Once I see how all this goes in the summer I will be straight on the phone and talking to Manchester United or Arsenal," he said.

Goater's personal website, www.shaungoater.bm, is up and running and further information and festival updates will be included on it.