Location and general information
CONTEXT
Following the successful establishment of Field in a Box pitches in Madrid, Mragowo (in north-eastern Poland) and Cape Town, the UEFA Foundation for Children and FedEx are working together on the construction of a new pitch in Rio Doce, on the outskirts of Recife. The global not-for-profit network streetfootballworld has helped to identify a suitable location for the pitch and chosen local charity love.fútbol to maintain the pitch and ensure its sustainable use.
PROJECT CONTENT
The UEFA Foundation for Children has been running its Field in a Box project since 2016 with the aim of providing enclosed, fully functional artificial football pitches to impoverished communities. These pitches are environmentally sustainable and quick to install.
OBJECTIVES
This project aims to improve the lives of young people and breathe new life into disadvantaged communities. By providing opportunities to play football, the foundation seeks to improve children’s health and support their personal development, while teaching them football’s core values (respect, team spirit, etc.).
love.fútbol is a global initiative dedicated to giving people access to football where communities lack safe and inclusive spaces for sport. Since its inception in 2006, the organisation has encouraged and taught communities to design, plan, build, manage and ultimately redefine football pitches as community assets and platforms for sustainable social change. In a participatory process, love.fútbol empowers communities to build a football pitch, providing guidance, finance and raw materials and mobilising local resources, while placing ownership of the entire process in the hands of the community in order to ensure the sustainability of the project.
The construction of this pitch in Rio Doce – where almost 60% of the population live below the poverty line, with incomes averaging less than US$100 a month – will give local children and young people a safe place to play and access to various development opportunities. love.fútbol’s local partner, Pazear, will use the pitch as a platform for its football activities, using sport to foster peace-building, gender equality and social transformation.
RESULTS TO DATE AND EXPECTED OUTCOMES
- Training sessions will take place using the football3 method.
- Concepts and studies will be developed with a view to promoting the continued use of football as a vehicle for peace-building, gender equality and social integration.
- Over the next year, hundreds of participants are expected to take part in football-related programmes implemented on the new pitch.
- In addition to weekly football sessions, the pitch will also provide a platform for weekly educational and monthly cultural activities.
PARTNERS



Situation géographique et informations générales
Context
Konami Holdings Corporation – a Japanese digital entertainment company and a UEFA Champions League sponsor – was willing to work with the UEFA Foundation for Children and take the Field in a Box concept to Brazil. The global not-for-profit network streetfootballworld helped Konami to identify a suitable location for its pitch – in Pirapora do Bom Jesus, on the outskirts of Sao Paulo – and chose local charity Fundação EPROCAD to maintain the pitch and ensure its sustainable use.
Project content
The UEFA Foundation for Children has been running its Field in a Box project since 2016 with the aim of providing enclosed, fully functional artificial football pitches to impoverished communities. These pitches are environmentally sustainable and quick to install.
Objectives
This project aims to improve the lives of young people and breathe new life into disadvantaged communities. By providing opportunities to play football, the foundation seeks to improve children’s health and support their personal development, while teaching them football’s core values (respect, team spirit, etc.).
Fundação EPROCAD is based in Santana de Parnaiba – a suburb of Sao Paulo – and uses sport, education and culture to help children, adolescents and their families to integrate into society. Its work is aimed primarily at children and young people from poor families, providing activities that contribute to social development. Through its projects, the charity gives participants access to sporting, educational and cultural activities that can help to improve their quality of life. It also offers targeted support in specific instances, as well as guidance and referrals for specialist care where necessary.
Pirapora do Bom Jesus is one of the poorest areas of the country, with 27.8% of the population living on incomes totalling less than half of the minimum wage. Heads of households have an average age of 44, with 17.4% under the age of 30. With no access to basic services such as health and education, life there is a struggle.
Results to date and expected outcomes
- This newly constructed pitch is the only place in the area where football can really be played.
- Fundação EPROCAD will use the pitch to implement football-based programmes, as well as encouraging local people to make use of these new facilities.
- Located next to a local day care centre, the pitch is ideal for physical education classes and recreational activities.
- It is expected that about 2,000 children and young people from the local community will benefit from this initiative.
Partners



Situation géographique et informations générales
Context
The Foundation of Polish Soccer is founded Polish Football Association. The foundation’s aim is to promote and develop football in Poland, to take action to develop and raise the level amateur football, and to support the activities of the Polish Football Association.
In 2017, Foundation of Polish Soccer initiated the first edition of Football Film Festival in Cracow in connection with UEFA EURO Under-21. This festival had the aim to promote football culture by seemingly football and film. This innovative concept was very successful and an innovative way to communicate with younger generations who had free access to the event.
The European Union Statistics on Income and Living Conditions (EU-SILC) showed clearly that kids from the poorest social group in Poland are in need of support to help them out of poverty giving them options and perspectives for personal development.
The Foundation of Polish Soccer wants to use the social and educational dimension of the Festival Film Festival by allocating a special free ticket pool for children and orphanages.
Project content
The football film festival was held in Warsaw from 25 to 26 May 2018.
The purpose is to promote sport and film culture especially among children and young people.
This year, the festival screened the most important documentaries of recent months, reflecting on the modern football world – its issues, absurdities and challenges, along with film portraits of football legends.
The festival had three sections:
- the main section included full-length documentaries produced after 1 January 2017
- the Krótka Piłka short-film section included both professional and amateur works
- the retro section looked back on important, yet forgotten films with a football theme, and we screened the best documentary along with feature films about football produced before 2016
The young participants had the opportunity to meet filmmakers, athletes and journalists.
On the sports side, a period was reserved exclusively for children to participate in practical activities on the playing field to promote physical and mental development.
Activities included:
- film screenings dedicated exclusively to children – free entry;
- zone of football activity at the cinema – trainings with trainers, football players from youth clubs
- meetings with footballers and coaches,
- distribution of football equipment
- meetings with filmmakers, actors, publishers
- exhibition of football posters
The novelty of the second edition of the Festival was to give the opportunity to youngsters to submit their own film to the festival organiser.
Objectives
- With the support of the ministry of national education, the objective is to involve pupils from 459 primary schools, high schools and technical schools.
- Support local communities and children from orphanages
- Give access to football and culture to children in the poorest social groups and give them a new perspective of personal development and empowerment
Expected results
- Attendance of 2,800 children aged 7-16 from schools and orphanages for free film screenings and football classes
- Promote and develop football among children in need so that they practise sport for their physical and mental well-being, to gain self-confidence and new perspectives and believe in a better future
- Promote and develop grassroots football in Poland
Partner

Location and general information
Context
Commonly known as ‘Ellis Island of the South’ or ‘the most diverse square mile in America’, the small southern US town of Clarkston has welcomed 40,000 refugees over a period of more than 25 years. Whereas in the past they tended to come from Bhutan, Eritrea, Somalia, Sudan, Liberia and Vietnam, most current refugees are Syrian or Congolese. Whatever the country of origin, migrating to another country is often a difficult process, notably on account of cultural and linguistic differences. Sport, however, is a universal language that can act as a bridge between different communities: in our case, football provides the scenario for youth to both adapt and become part of the local community fiber. It also gives people an opportunity to integrate: having fun and making new friends at the same time. Nevertheless, the high prices charged by sports clubs, the high level of poverty and the lack of sports facilities in Clarkston are hindering the personal development and social integration of child refugees. The anti-immigration policies directed at Syrian refugees in recent years in the state of Georgia are exacerbating the problem, resulting in a lack of investment in sport and health in refugee communities.
Project content
Soccer in the Streets is a sport for development organisation that supports inner city children and young people living in the Atlanta metropolitan area. Our programs combine football sessions and youth development activities to create positive social change for underserved children. It gives them the chance to play football regardless of their ethnic origin, socio-economic status or religion. By adopting a holistic approach, the project is not limited to football on the pitch. It goes further than that, in particular by enabling personal development and education, with participants taking part in small-group sessions, hands-on activities or youth leadership councils. The project provides out-of-school activities that combine football with basic life skills. Older children are also invited to take part in workshops as part of the ‘Life Works’ programme. These sessions prepare teenage refugees for the world of work by helping them acquire employability skills. The project also plans to broaden its activities to include and have a positive impact on girls by helping them to boost their self-confidence and ensure their rights are respected.
Objectives
- To facilitate the integration of young refugees and their families living in Clarkston
- To promote a healthy lifestyle among children in precarious situations
- To have a positive impact on the town of Clarkston by overcoming prejudice towards refugees
- To increase the employability of young refugees living in Clarkston
- To increase the participation of girls in the project’s activities
- To provide opportunities so program participants can broaden their horizon by seeking to enter higher education institutions (Universities, Technical Colleges)
- To develop community leaders
- To connect youth with appropriate partners providing key services
Expected results
- To work with a total of 200 youth, including 80 girls
- To graduate 20 participants from our employability program
- To train/certify 10 coaches or 20 referees from refugee communities and provide them with an income
Partner
