Access to Sport Archives - Page 21 of 23

Tackling youth unemployment

Location and general information

CONTEXT

In March 2017, 3.883 million young people aged under 25 were unemployed in the 28 EU member states. The situation is especially worrying in France, where almost one in four young people were unemployed (Eurostats, May 2017). Although the situation is less alarming in the United Kingdom, which has one of the lowest unemployment rates in Europe, job insecurity in particular means that even young people who are employed find themselves in a precarious situation.

A lack of support for young job-seekers, inadequate qualifications and economic recession are all factors that prevent young people finding work.

PROJECT CONTENT

This two-year pilot project organised by the UEFA Foundation for Children, car manufacturer Nissan (Nissan Europe) and the streetfootballworld global network is designed to support Sport dans la Ville (France) and Street League (United Kingdom), two organisations that share the common goal of using the power of sport to help young people find employment. Hard work, discipline and respect for the rules are all values that sport can teach young people. Alongside sports activities, the project organises workshops that enable young people to develop their employability skills. As well as increasing their self-confidence and helping them to acquire key skills, the project gives young people the chance to participate in work placements and work-study programmes, to find employment with a well-known company and to take part in activities run by the Nissan Skills Foundation (which focuses on youth skills development).

OBJECTIVES

To reduce youth unemployment in France and the United Kingdom
To promote the social and professional integration of young people from disadvantaged areas by giving them access to training, employment and sports activities
To promote the benefits and values of sport as an instrument of social change

EXPECTED RESULTS

Lower school drop-out rate, higher employment and better training among young people aged between 15 and 24 in France and the United Kingdom.

PARTNERS

Extra Time – Tackling the ‘Dead Zone’

Location and general information

Context

Jocotenango is an area of Guatemala that suffers from grinding poverty, gang crime, drug/alcohol abuse and domestic/sexual violence. Education for the Children (EFTC) runs a School of Hope in the area which is attended by more than 650 children. It also operates a successful four-point integrated plan helping people to escape poverty, which combines education, nutrition, health care and social support.

EFTC’s Extra Time project aims to tackle the issue of the ‘dead zone’ – the period between school ending and parents returning from work (which is often late in the evening). EFTC plans to use sport as a solution to this problem, seeking to combat the lifelong implications of children falling into gang crime, substance abuse and anti-social behaviour at a young age. In view of the fact that Guatemala has a three-month rainy season, EFTC will build an all-weather pitch with a roof and a drainage system to allow children to use the site all year round. This new facility will also be used for various community projects, such as workshops for children and parents, medical check‑ups and an empowerment project for local girls. For the School of Hope, sport is much more than just a game – it is a game changer.

Project content

Sport as a solution to the ‘dead zone’

The Extra Time project will use access to sport as a solution to the problem of the ‘dead zone’. The organisation of after-school sports clubs and community workshops will provide significant opportunities for personal development and the protection of children’s rights.

Access to life skills through sport

Football clubs – and sports clubs in general – will not only serve as an alternative activity; they will also play a pivotal role in children’s development.

Bridging gaps

The Extra Time project will also organise tournaments with a view to bridging gaps between local communities.

A school of football fans

At present, the School of Hope is full of football fans with no real way of enjoying the game. EFTC aims to harness their passion for football and use it to tackle the issue of the ‘dead zone’, helping them to achieve long-term success by escaping poverty.

Objectives

To tackle the ‘dead zone’ and give children living in poverty an alternative to hanging around on the streets after school
To offer positive alternative activities, steering children away from crime, alcohol/drug abuse and unprotected/underage sex
To increase participation in sport among children with no current access to facilities, coaching or equipment
To empower girls through sport, self-defence classes and workshops
To provide the local community with a safe venue for workshops
To bridge gaps between communities through inter-school football tournaments

Expected results

- 3,000 local people with access to sport and community workshops that are not currently available to them
- Safer, healthier and more academically engaged children
- Children with less time and inclination to engage in gang crime, alcohol/drug abuse or unprotected sex after school
- Children who are well educated on the subjects of sex, sexually transmitted diseases and sexual abuse
- A reduction in the number of children at the School of Hope who are involved in gang crime
- Better future prospects for children as a result of essential life skills taught through sporting activities
- A reduction in the number of cases of substance abuse at the School of Hope
- A reduction in the number of teenage pregnancies at the School of Hope (expected to fall from ten to five by the end of the first year)
- More confident girls who are actively engaged in higher education and making positive choices regarding their future
- Greater engagement in the local community through community workshops
- Better networking with schools in surrounding communities through tournament events
Partners

Field in a box – Mragowo

Location and general information

CONTEXT

Following the successful installation of the first Field in a Box football pitch in Cañada Real, the UEFA Foundation for Children decided to continue its work with FedEx, which financed the construction of a second pitch in the small town of Mragowo in northeast Poland. The global not-for-profit network streetfootballworld helped to identify the location for the pitch and select local charity Mazurskie Stowarzyszenie Inicjatyw Sportowych (MSIS) to maintain the pitch and ensure its sustainable use and positive impact.

PROJECT CONTENT

The UEFA Foundation for Children has been running the Field in a Box project since 2016, the aim being to provide an enclosed, fully functional artificial football pitch to communities in need. The system is environmentally sustainable and quick to install.

OBJECTIVES

By promoting this project, the UEFA Foundation for Children aims to improve the lives of young people and breathe new life into disadvantaged communities. By providing opportunities to play football, the foundation endeavours to promote children’s health and support their personal development, while instilling in them the values of football, such as respect and team spirit.

RESULTS TO DATE AND EXPECTED RESULTS

Organising football training using the football3 method
Maintaining and ensuring sustainable use of the pitch through the recruitment of an activities coordinator by local charity Mazurskie Stowarzyszenie Inicjatyw Sportowych (MSIS)
Facilitating the integration and social cohesion of different people living in Mragowo

PARTNERS

La League: Champions of Change

Location and general information

Context

Girls and young women in developing countries often face two severe obstacles when growing up: child marriage and teenage pregnancy. Although it is often perceived to be a girl’s destiny, becoming a wife and a mother at such a young age has major consequences. In Latin America, where machismo prevails, girls believe that early marriage and pregnancy are the only way to escape poverty and violence at home. However, this often turns out to be a continuation of an already negative cycle of events, as marriage and motherhood tend to limit girls’ development even more.

Teenage pregnancy and child marriage pose serious health risks, with unsafe abortions and complications relating to pregnancy and childbirth being some of the leading causes of death among girls aged 15 to 19. This not only affects the individual in question; it trickles straight down to the next generation, with families, communities and even entire nations remaining trapped in a cycle of poverty and gender inequality. Teenage pregnancies are more likely in poor, uneducated and rural communities – exactly the kinds of community that Plan works in.

La League project aims to empower adolescent girls and their male peers in Nicaragua with a view to preventing teenage pregnancies and delaying marriage. One of the methods used consists of involving fathers and boys in efforts to achieve equal rights and freedoms for girls. This makes football the ideal vehicle for this project, as a male-dominated arena is exactly what is needed. Football can have a powerful impact in terms of changing gender roles and raising awareness regarding the negative impact of teenage pregnancies and child marriages.

Project content

Plan has, in cooperation with the Johan Cruyff Foundation and Women Win, established an effective model empowering adolescent girls and young women between the ages of 12 and 20 to decide for themselves whether, when and whom to marry, and whether, when and with whom to have children. At the heart of this project lies football, with the organisers encouraging girls to play the game and turn talented players into professional football heroes, and at the same time encouraging fathers and male role models to support their girls – not only when it comes to football, but also in other more important life choices. Thus, football is used to transform gender norms and raise awareness regarding sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR).

With the support of the UEFA Foundation for Children, this project will now be rolled out in Nicaragua, which has the highest teen pregnancy rate in Latin America.

Girls’ football lies at the very heart of Plan’s methodology. Football is used to empower girls and make them more visible to fathers and boys, who then get involved in efforts to achieve equal rights and freedoms for girls, helping to prevent teenage pregnancies and child marriages. This method consists of three different pathways:

- Social empowerment of girls through football

The goal is to motivate girls to play football and experience teamwork, helping them to increase their self-confidence and boosting their knowledge of sexual and reproductive rights.

- Involvement of fathers and other male role models

In order to transform gender norms and raise awareness, boys and fathers will be encouraged to support their girls – not only when it comes to football, but also in other more important life choices.

- Economic empowerment of girls through the creation of job opportunities in football

This project seeks to create jobs and other income-producing opportunities in the world of football or related domains, so that girls can, for example, become coaches or gain access to scholarships in order to pursue playing careers.

Plan of action:

Conduct a baseline study looking at the incidence of teenage pregnancy and child marriage.
Develop didactic material and train trainers.
Engage with local government in order to turn municipal sports courts into safe spaces for girls.
Conduct two media training sessions for 20 youth reporters.
Help girls and boys (of the same age) to organise events raising awareness of the harmful effects of child marriage and teenage pregnancy.
Involve 150 fathers, brothers and other male figures in girls’ football activities.
Teach 40 girls leadership and entrepreneurial skills.
Produce a video documentary on the impact of girls’ football in Nicaragua.

Expected results

Awareness regarding the negative effects of teenage pregnancy and child marriage will increase significantly. Girls and boys will both learn about how they can prevent early pregnancy and marriage.

300 girls will attend Champions of Change football training.
20 girls’ football teams will be established in 10 different communities.
150 boys will be trained as Champions of Change.
10 girls and 10 boys will become youth reporters and cover the La League project.
4,500 peers will be in contact with Champions of Change through peer-to-peer events.
150 fathers/male role models will be actively involved in their girls’ football activities, supporting them in their SRHR decisions.
300 members of the community will be committed to improving gender equality in their daily lives.
40 girls will learn leadership/entrepreneurial skills and have access to football-related jobs (such as coaching).
4 talented girls will have access to sports scholarships.

Partners

Field in a Box – Cañada Real

Location and general information

CONTEXT

The UEFA Foundation for Children exists to promote the fundamental rights of children all over the world. Health, education, access to sport and personal development are all areas in which children’s rights can be safeguarded.
By providing infrastructure such as football pitches, the Foundation aims to use football as a powerful tool for social cohesion.

PROJECT CONTENT

The Field in a Box project was launched in Cañada Real. Situated less than 15 minutes from the Spanish capital, Cañada Real is one of the largest shanty towns in Europe, housing a total of 30,000 people in deplorable conditions. Relations between the different communities that live there, especially between Roma and Moroccan immigrants, are often difficult.
Thanks to financial support from FedEx – the world’s largest logistics company and main sponsor of the UEFA Europa League – and coordination by the not-for-profit organisation streetfootballworld, the UEFA Foundation for Children donated a football pitch to the charity Red Deporte y Cooperación. The pitch was built using the Field in a Box system, in which all the components of a football pitch are supplied in two containers. The system provides a safe sports facility comprising an enclosed artificial football pitch, goals, floodlights and changing rooms.

OBJECTIVES

The project’s main objective is to enable young people in Cañada Real, where sports facilities are few and far between, to play sport. By promoting football in Cañada Real, the foundation hopes to curb the exclusion of marginalised communities and foster greater social harmony.

RESULTS

In the space of one year:

Participation of 400 children (90% boys and 10% girls) in football
Organisation of 500 matches
Pitch maintained by youth coaches from the local community

Field in a Box is funded as part of FedEx Cares, a wide-ranging campaign that aims to invest in more than 200 communities in Europe and beyond by 2020. By cooperating with the UEFA Foundation for Children alongside its sponsorship of professional football, FedEx hopes to support initiatives with a positive local impact.

PARTNERS

Brincar de Rua – Street Play

Location and general information

Terminé

Location Portugal

Start date 09/01/2016

End date 12/31/2019

Cost of the project €352,391

Foundation funding €63,749

Project identifier EUR - 0130

Partners Ludotempo, Higher School of Education and Social Sciences of the Polytechnical Institute of Leiria (Escola Superior de Educação e Ciências Sociais do Instituto Politécnico de Leiria), Portuguese Institute for Sports and Youth (Instituto Português do Desporto e Juventude - IPDJ), London Play (UK).

Context

In general, Portuguese children are swamped with organised activities (from school to extra-curricular activities), they have poor access to physical activities, little free time and almost no time for free play – but the thing they wish for most of all is to play freely outside. Portuguese parents would love to see their children play freely outside, however they are overly afraid that their children might get abducted, sexually abused, have an accident on the road or get into a fight with other children. The project aims to provide children with opportunities to naturally develop their motor and social skills and adopt healthier lifestyles, while offering their parents a safe and healthy way to occupy their children.

Brincar de Rua will provide free, active and non-digital play experience in urban areas to children aged 5 to 12. The children will be able to go to the play group in their neighbourhood and take part in activities that promote their health, development and well-being.

Brincar de Rua has developed a high-impact and scalable programme which:

trains monitors, volunteers and mentors who manage groups of children;
involves local partners;
provides a web platform that gathers all the group information (security, training, membership) and puts everyone in contact;
evaluates security issues for each play group and provides specific materials;
schedules a play calendar and manages the monitors present at each play-group session;
registers every child, provides each child with an insurance policy and gives each one a GPS locator to use in the sessions (this is managed through a mobile phone app that allows parents to know the exact location of their children).Children are happy to enjoy their neighbourhood, develop personal and social skills, and get active and healthy.

Ludotempo, the owner of the project, is a non-profit association based in Leiria. Its mission is to promote the right of children to play. Playing is essential to the physical, emotional and intellectual health of children and helps them develop into efficient, well-balanced adults.

The financial support from the UEFA Foundation for Children will assure the training, mentoring programme and part of the material needed for the play groups – all vital aspects for the implementation of the project.

Project content

Brincar de Rua started as a pilot project to test security issues, community activation processes, training strategies, technology issues and communication strategies. The results of this first step were excellent:

the demand to participate in the programme exceeded the number of places available by almost five times;
a lot of volunteers were ready to get involved in the project;
20 local partners were mobilised to help out with tasks such as community activation and project dissemination;
the project received good media coverage and engagement through the organisation’s website and social networks.

The positive perceptions of the project led to the development phase of the programme – preparation of all training content, strategies and methodologies, production of a training manual and establishment of the recruiting process protocol. Promotional campaigns, events, an exhibition and a round table about the importance of play and children in the city will involve local partners such as parents’ associations.

The Brincar de Rua model is a global programme that can be implemented in different places.

Objectives

create around 190 play groups across 11 Portuguese cities,
provide the facilities to involve 2,300 children in free-play activities,
create awareness of the importance of play, targeting 40 schools and more than 300 first to fourth-grade teachers,
lobby the local authorities in order to encourage play-promoting policies and initiatives, including the right for children to use public spaces and to play in total safety;
help to change the mentality of school directors and teachers, promoting the inclusion of free play in the day-by-day routine of Portuguese schools,
help to change the habits of Portuguese families
create new informal play groups outside the Brincar de Rua grid;
train more than 300 volunteers (potential community leaders) and 30 future trainers/ mentors to ensure the natural replication of new play groups,
encourage the involvement of local people in parallel pro-community activities;

Project activities

– Stimulate active and free play for children without the presence of digital games and devices

– Provide the municipalities and the neighbourhoods with an engaging programme that stimulates active and healthy behaviours and encourages community participation

– Lay the foundations for a new training methodology for volunteers based on online training and informal peer to peer training.

Expected results

Direct impact:

increase in the number of free and active play hours for the children;
increase in the number of physical activities per child (sport, outdoor activities, play activities with other children;
reduction in the number of screen hours of children (TV, digital games, etc.) four hours less a week (about 20% reduction);
increase in the number of hours of physicial activities in families – one more hour a week;
reduction in the number of overweight children by 10%;
increase in the number of activities organised by the programme leaders in their neighbourhoods – at least 20% of the play groups should organise or be involved in the organisation of one parallel activity in their community.

Other expected results:

Scientific dissemination of the importance of free play:

22,000 families impacted through activities in schools and 40,000 people through regional media coverage;
2,200 people directly involved in the dissemination activities;
300 teachers, school directors and other education professionals involved in the seminars.

Partner

Beyond the Green Pitch

Location and general information

Context

Founded in 2003, the Instituto Fazer Acontecer, based in Salvador de Bahia, promotes sports activities and training in human rights to young people living in disadvantaged areas. The main idea is to use football to educate through play and fun, providing opportunities for social inclusion and development of personal skills to the young participants in the programme. Football3 methodology is already used in 16 municipalities and reaches young adults in the rural areas where most of the challenges lie. Combining sport with environmental awareness activities works as a tool for effective social change in the target communities and provides education in human rights, establishing a relationship of respect and a feeling of being respected and of belonging in the community.

The Instituto Fazer Acontecer plans to extend its action to reach an additional 15 municipalities with the financial support of the UEFA Foundation for Children.

Project content

The UEFA Foundation for Children will support the Beyond the Green Pitch project, which aims to:

train 300 instructors in football3 methodology and in combining football with environmental awareness activities;
involve 900 young people (boys and girls) aged between 11 and 17 from 15 municipalities in the programme.

Objectives

Create a new sporting and environmental culture in the municipalities taking part in the project;
Raise the self-esteem of the participants (instructors and young people);
Promote environmental awareness in the region;
Specific goals:

1) to train 300 instructors in football3 methodology environmental awareness activities,
2) to promote capacity-building in sport and the environment among the 300 instructors,
3) to involve 900 young people aged between 11 and 17 from the municipalities taking part in the project in weekly activities (sport and environmental awareness),
4) to establish sustainable projects in at least half of the participating municipalities.

EXPECTED IMPACT AND RESULTS
• Reach 1,200 individuals (300 instructors and 900 young people)
• Impact public policies of the 15 municipalities by introducing the football3 methodology in schools
• Impact indirectly 5,000 people (families, institutions and communities)

Partners

Life Skills Curriculum Project

Location and general information

Context

More than 25 years of international and domestic insecurity and violence in the Democratic Republic of the Congo has left very few prospects for youth development. As a consequence of this long period of instability, the population is facing health issues such as drug and alcohol abuse, malnutrition and communicable disease transmission. In this context, Promo Jeune Basket (PJB), a locally run grassroots organisation based in Goma, focuses on educating youth through basketball. PJB aims to empower youth to overcome their difficult situations by using sport as a tool for health promotion, peace and education by requiring all participants to attend school.

The UEFA Foundation for Children is supporting the Life Skills Curriculum Project. This programme will encourage young people to focus on their future, avoid risk behaviours and engage in the world with a global perspective. The course will include a range of topics, including personal health and hygiene, the importance of education, goal setting, and non-violent communication.

This project will run in tandem with the existing programmes of the organisation: basketball training that uses sport to instil the values of hard work, team spirit, discipline and respect; and the provision of school scholarships for players who exemplify these values on the court and in the community.

Project Content

Life Skills Curriculum Project is a course tailored to the needs and aspirations of the community. These lessons provide young people with a chance to learn about personal health, practice non-violent conflict resolution, increase their ability to work with others and allow a safe, open space for dialogue about the challenges they encounter in their community. These objectives are met through the five components of the course:

Personal development – focus on health, hygiene and self-confidence
Collaboration and cooperation – focus on conflict resolution
Interpersonal communication – focus on processing and expressing emotions, as well as on public speaking
Professional development – focus on goal-setting, time management and leadership development
Problem-solving and critical thinking – focus on dialogue around community issues such as poverty, insecurity, domestic and sexual abuse, and peer pressure

Objectives

Deliver the life skills curriculum to PJB players aged 14 and older. These youngster will develop personally and professionally, learn strategies for facilitating non-violent conflict resolution, collaborate with others and practise critical thinking.
Train 15 young leaders (university and upper secondary students) to teach and deliver life skills lessons on and off the court.
Offer the life skills curriculum to over 1,200 young people in the city of Goma.
Create a media programme to promote the life skills programme and reach a larger number of young people in the city.

Expected impact and results

1. The personal development classes increase young people’s confidence and leadership skills.
2. The communication lessons prepare young people to facilitate non-violent communication and make them fluent in peace strategies.
3. The professional development lessons prepare young people to succeed both academically and professionally.
4. The collaboration and cooperation lessons improve young people’s ability to work in diverse groups.
5. The problem-solving units cultivate critical-thinking skills as well as open dialogue for talking about difficult issues such as poverty and insecurity. The ultimate result of the life skills programme is that young people are helped to become active citizen leaders in their community.

Partners

Football for All in Vietnam

Location and General Information

Context

The Football for All in Vietnam (FFAV) project was initiated in 1997 and formally established in 2001 by means of a partnership between the Football Association of Norway (NFF) and the Vietnam Football Federation (VFF). FFAV uses football activities to teach life skills and promote cultural values to young children and adolescents. FFAV currently supports 1,541 teams at 183 clubs, with more than 17,000 children participating in these activities.

However, with certain children facing specific problems when it comes to integrating into their communities, this programme is set to be expanded in order to cover three specific groups:

Young girls – particularly girls from ethnic minorities – are often expected to conform to gender roles set out by society and their families, as well as facing issues associated with a lack of education and early marriage.
Children with disabilities are often treated as outsiders and seen as unable to fully participate in society because of their differences.
Children living on boats in resettlement areas face a plethora of societal issues as a consequence of being seen as different and inferior by local residents. This results in them being discriminated against, not wanting to go to school and not having many friends.

Objectives

This project will extend the FFAV model to cover these children, specifically allocating resources to these groups in order to help them address the issues they face through participation in football and life skills activities. Alongside funding from UEFA, additional programmes and resources will be deployed in order to meet the following objectives:

fostering social inclusion – especially among parents and children – by giving girls, children with disabilities and children from resettlement areas greater access to football activities;
helping and supporting local partners, enabling them to facilitate grassroots football and life skills activities on the ground;
helping to improve soft skills (including communication, self-confidence and teamwork) and raise social awareness of the target groups through football activities/events incorporating life skills;
promoting volunteerism and the development of leadership skills among young people in the community.

Project Content

Activities will be concentrated in specific areas of Thua Thien Hue Province: A Luoi District and Nam Dong District, resettlement areas and social centres. They will include the following:

Football training for coaches and referees at new clubs, plus life skills courses

Youth leadership programme
Volunteer training for members of local communities, including parents
Three ‘fun football festivals’ with a focus on integrating young girls from ethnic minorities, children from resettlement areas and children with disabilities
Study tour monitoring the needs and results of the project

Expected Results

Grassroots football will be introduced in seven new resettlement areas and maintained in four others. We expect the creation of football clubs to encourage children to stay in school, improving their level of education. Making friends in the community will lead to further social inclusion, while increased self-confidence will result in better communication skills. Children will learn life skills through club activities, which will reduce addiction and early pregnancies.
At least 2,000 disadvantaged children – including ethnic minority girls in two mountainous districts, orphans and children with disabilities in 14 social centres, and children in resettlement areas – will be included in FFAV’s football and life skills project as a matter of priority.
All children participating in the project will be taught about gender equality, social inclusion, children’s rights and other social problems associated with their community.

At least 500 adolescent girls – especially those from ethnic minorities – will be taught about reproductive health, financial management, health and hygiene, and communication.

We expect that participation in football activities at the various new clubs will result in more young girls becoming physically active. We hope to have equal numbers of girls and boys playing, which should help to gradually break down gender norms.

In addition, 13 existing football clubs in social centres and resettlement areas are to receive assistance, being given both operational and financial support.

Allowing children with disabilities to participate in football activities will help to improve social inclusion by fostering interaction with a wide range of different people. We want to increase awareness and understanding of the issues faced by children with disabilities, enable them to play and interact with other children, increase their self-confidence, improve their communication skills and encourage other children to play with them. Overall, this project aims to break down negative prejudices about children with disabilities, using football to show the contribution that they can make to society.

Partners

Sport after reading and play

Location and General Information

Context

According to the United Nations, Benin, Cameroon and Togo are some of the world’s poorest countries, ranked 166th, 153rd and 162nd respectively out of 188 in terms of human development. None of them have an average life expectancy of more than 57 years; children spend an average of less than six years at school (less than four in Benin); less than a third of children go on to secondary or higher education; and both women and girls are marginalised when it comes to sport.

This project forms part of an educational programme outside of school which uses games, sport, books and modern IT in order to provide teaching, pursue preventive and educational goals, and achieve a comprehensive range of development objectives in deprived areas of developing countries, establishing libraries of books and games, sports academies promoting team sports, dedicated IT areas, etc.

Project content

This project uses the power of football – and sport in general – to foster the development of deprived children in all respects and improve their life chances. The funding that the UEFA Foundation for Children provides will allow the project to:

build and equip multi-sport pitches in the heart of deprived areas of the three countries;
purchase sports equipment for handball, basketball, football and volleyball;
train young local sports coaches;
organise a sports academy offering four hours of coaching a week for each sport (i.e. a total of 16 hours a week across the four sports);
organise a promotional tournament;
bring organisers from the three countries together to exchange ideas;
establish monitoring, oversight, support and assessment mechanisms.

Objectives

Foster personal development and self-confidence, preparing children for the future and helping them to escape poverty
Help teachers/instructors to organise high-quality educational initiatives through sport with a view to fostering all aspects of development
Help to improve the physical and mental well-being of young children and adolescents in deprived areas by giving them the opportunity to play four team sports (football, handball, volleyball and basketball) in a high-quality environment
Teach children sporting values such as respect, sharing, solidarity, humility, perseverance, discipline and team spirit
Promote universal access to team sports through regular sessions overseen by trained local coaches from the same social class as the children
Foster exchanges of ideas/experiences and networking among the young sports coaches with a view to effecting lasting change through sport

Expected results

In order to ensure that these sports are played in appropriate conditions, help participants to really develop their sports skills and learn the positive civic values embodied by sport, and encourage children to adopt behavioural patterns that reflect the project’s educational objectives, a maximum of 30 participants will be able to sign up for each of the four sports (handball, volleyball, football and basketball) in each semester – i.e. each country will have a limit of 240 children per year (resulting in a grand total of 720 beneficiaries per year). This should allow the following objectives to be achieved:

Develop new educational activities in these deprived areas
Facilitate team sports through the construction of pitches
Recruit young coaches (men and women) to work with local children
Offer sustainable and structured sporting activities throughout the year
Foster positive values such as respect, sharing, solidarity, discipline and team spirit
Increase participation among girls and stimulate the local community
Tackle inactivity

Partners

Football for Life Champions Academy

Location and General Information

Context

On 8 November 2013, Typhoon Haiyan tore through the Philippines, leaving a trail of destruction in its wake. The islands of Leyte and Samar were hit particularly hard, including Leyte’s provincial capital, Tacloban, which suffered widespread devastation and numerous fatalities. After this natural disaster, there was no play, no joy and no opportunity for children just to be children.

Football has since restored childhood to children in Tacloban. The Football for Life (F4L) Champions Academy project uses football to engage with children and adolescents from severely marginalised communities, who are trapped in a cycle of intergenerational poverty. Most often these children and young people do not have access to education – or if they do, they are not particularly successful in their studies, as they lack the necessary life skills and the confidence to succeed. This is exactly the void that the project fills.

Project content

The UEFA Foundation for Children is supporting the Football for Life Champions Academy, which helps severely disadvantaged children to complete their education by helping them into higher education, training or skilled employment. The youngsters are connected with local champions (youth football coaches), who act as mentors, motivating the children to stay in school and thrive there. They encourage and provide positive reinforcement for children who often lack encouragement to continue and succeed in education.

Objectives

To restore childhood where it has ceased to exist by providing football-based play therapy
To help children to pursue their dreams, regardless of their social status and gender
To promote football as a possible career path for the coaches
To promote football among children and young people and identify and nurture football talent
To bring dignity to the local communities and restore their sense of identity

Concrete actions:

Delivering the Champions Academy curriculum through football sessions
Organising the annual Sama Sama Games (the first-ever football tournament to promote equality
Participating in local, regional, national and international football tournaments and events
Developing football coaches further
Developing non-football life skills and giving support with homework

Expected results

Improved academic performance and a bigger commitment from children to their studies: we expect 95% of children to become more focused on their studies and improve their academic performance as a result of being involved in the project.
Meaningful relationships and deep trust between coaches and children: we expect up to 97% of children to confirm that the football coaches are their life role models, which will place further importance on developing the coaches and making them champions for the children.
Improved culture of medium/long-term commitment: we expect 100% of the children’s families to encourage their children to continue the programme, thus further cultivating long-term commitment.
Access to employment: by working with local business partners, the programme will connect the beneficiaries with real-life opportunities. An example of this already exists through an understanding with AirAsia that children and young people who complete the programme can be selected to enter the pilot cadet training centre and ultimately have the opportunity to become an airline pilot.

Figures: forcast for the next 36 months

3,600 football sessions delivered to 2,000 children and adolescents in Tacloban
10,000 children and young people reached indirectly through project activities
2,400 hours of homework support given to the project participants in disciplines such as English, maths and environment
Training of 20 coaches from Tacloban in technical expertise and the delivery of football life skills sessions
At least 100 children exposed to national and international travel for football tournaments, who will later share their stories with peers back in their home communities
Football for Life Champions Academy curriculum completed, ready to be used to replicate the project elsewhere, and potentially be adopted by the national department of education
50 young people enrolled on leadership workshops and matched with real-life job opportunities.

Partners

Inter Campus in Israel and Palestine

Location and general information

Our aim

Inter Campus, FC Internazionale Milano’s social programme, seeks to foster social, religious and racial equality worldwide, with a specific focus on children’s rights. It uses football as an educational tool, training local coaches and giving thousands of deprived children opportunities to play the game.

In Israel and Palestine, the main issue concerns violence and the lack of integration between the various ethnic and religious groups. The main aim in this region is to foster integration and promote peace through dialogue and cultural exchange. This project harnesses the power of sport, giving nearly 200 Israeli, Arab-Israeli and Palestinian children the opportunity to come together and play.

Project content

Inter Campus works with Ghetton, an organisation which has been supporting Israeli children from Tel-Aviv, Arab-Israeli children from Jerusalem, Palestinian children from the West Bank and refugees from other ethnic backgrounds since 2013. This locally based partner runs training sessions four times a week, using the Inter Campus methodology to achieve important objectives that go far beyond physical exercise – seeking, for example, to maximise children’s spare time, promote integration between the various communities, and teach sporting values such as respect, loyalty and solidarity. Training sessions always target cognitive, social and emotional development, with children learning valuable life skills while playing and having fun.

Children also take part in a number of off-pitch activities, such as recreational visits to cultural sites that they would otherwise not have access to. The sharing of such experiences with children from different backgrounds is key to the promotion of mutual understanding and integration.

Inter Campus provides technical equipment, as well as official Internazionale shirts, which are given to all participants as an important symbol of inclusion. In addition, Inter Campus coaches share their sporting and educational knowledge with local coaches, visiting the region at least once a semester. Theoretical and practical sessions are organised during such visits in order to ensure that activities are conducted in the correct manner the rest of the time.

In June 2016, the six local coaches implementing the project were invited to Italy, where they spent an intensive week working with Italian children, together with other Inter Campus coaches from Mexico and Colombia. This was a great opportunity for cultural exchange.

Objectives

Promote integration and peace
Ensure that deprived children have opportunities to play football
Use football for educational purposes
- Teach respect (for rules, team-mates and coaches)
- Communicate sporting values (loyalty, sacrifice, punctuality and solidarity)
Provide continuity by organising a consistent activity in an unstable context
- Help children to acquire new trust in people
- Help children to recognise the role of coaches
Allow participants to develop their own opinions based on real-life experiences

Expected impact and results

Increase the amount of time that children spend playing
Develop children’s personalities and capture/retain their interest
Foster integration between the various ethnic groups and give children a fresh perspective on life
Open children’s minds by allowing them to form their own opinions based on real-life experiences
Overcome the prejudices that children are forced to live with on account of the views of society and their own families
Foster spontaneous dialogue between the various communities and promote respectful coexistence

Partners

Royal Europa 90 Kraainem FC

LOCATION AND GENERAL INFORMATION

OUR AIM

Kraainem football club is located just outside Brussels. Last year, the club decided to take action in the refugee crisis, believing in the power of football for social cohesion. The club’s officials contacted the Belgian federal agency for the reception of refugees and developed a programme to welcome unaccompanied minors to their training, offering French classes and a meal as well. The initiative was very well received and the club welcomed 350 young boys over the course of the year.

AID PLANS

The club is requesting funding to support the continuation of its pilot initiative to use football to support 700 unaccompanied minors aged 13 to 18. The youngsters will be offered the opportunity to participate in the club’s training sessions and take French language classes taught by local volunteers. In addition, they will receive training equipment and a meal.

To develop this project, the club wishes to lobby for their approach to be used by other clubs as well, and for its recognition as a leading example of the integration of refugees through football.

BENEFICIARIES

700 accompanied minors.

LINK

www.kraainemfootball.be

OUR PARTNERS

Organisation Earth

LOCATION AND GENERAL INFORMATION

OUR AIM

Organisation Earth is a Greek non-profit, non-governmental organisation founded in 2010. Its mission is the development of the concept of environmental and social intelligence, by providing experiential, non-formal education for sustainable development for all ages, introducing key sustainability issues into everyday life, primarily through learning activities.

Education for sustainable development promotes knowledge, skills, attitudes and values necessary to shape a better future for society as a whole, using methods that motivate and empower the learners to change their behaviour and take action for a new economic model that takes into account the social and environmental impact.

AID PLANS

Organisation Earth is using the funding from the UEFA Foundation for Children as an incentive to introduce football activities into their work.

The organisation has a large amount of experience in working in refugee camps in Greece, providing services and opportunities to refugees that go beyond providing accommodation and food, but foster critical thinking and the ability to take informed decisions.

The organisation plans to provide a football field and activities to 100 young people aged between 10 and 18 who live in the Sounio refugee camp in Athens. The football field will be a safe place in the camp that will help the young people to improve their health and well-being.

BENEFICIARIES

100 children.

LINK

www.organizationearth.org

OUR PARTNERS

Movement on the Ground

LOCATION AND GENERAL INFORMATION

OUR AIM

Movement on the Ground is a foundation responding to a humanitarian crisis affecting the innocent men, women and children forced from their homes by climate change, poverty and war.

The organisation wants to provide structural support to major transit camps on Lesvos and the Greek mainland in the form of heat, shelter and hot food.

AID PLANS

Movement on the Ground plans to build a football pitch in the refugee camp in Lesvos to introduce football3 activities to help camp residents deal with their traumatic situation.

Movement on the Ground is already working in the camp and therefore has access to the local infrastructure and is in contact with camp officials.

The proposal is part of a bigger vision – a plan to restructure the refugee camp into an open campus with numerous opportunities for long and short-term residents.

BENEFICIARIES

2,500 to 5,000 child refugee.

LINK

www.movementontheground.com

OUR PARTNERS

Football Friends

LOCATION AND GENERAL INFORMATION

OUR AIM

The tumult and violence of the nineties crippled all aspects of society in the republics of the former Yugoslavia, and the region’s young people continue to be affected by their countries’ recent past. In 2005, Football Friends was created to help this younger generation transform their lives and to help heal the fragmented societies in which they are growing up.

In cooperation with organisations such as the British Council and various town councils, Football Friends facilitates educational initiatives in conjunction with non-formal educational institutions to enhance youth development. The organisation currently runs football programmes across Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro and Serbia which have served more than 4,500 participants since 2005.

AID PLANS

Programmes named ‘With a little help of Football Friends’

To use football as a vehicle to foster social inclusion and cohesion.
To target communities with a high proportion of refugees and migrants.
Core activity: the Football Friends City League, with mixed-gender teams competing on selected weekends and playing in leagues within their cities.
The highest-ranked teams will be invited for a two-day grand finals tournament.
Besides football, participants will have a chance to participate in educational activities.