MOSCOW: On the sidelines of the already successful FIFA World Cup 2018 in Russia, the game’s governing body is hosting the FIFA Foundation Festival for a period of 10 days in the country’s capital city. The theme of the festival is that football has the power to unite, inspire and change lives across the globe.
As a result, FIFA has roped in as many as 48 NGOs from 38 nations that play a role in developing young, underprivileged children to play in a football competition amongst each other.
“Football is much more than a game. It’s a fantastic tool to make sure this world becomes a better place,” FIFA’s Head of Sustainability and Diversity Federico Addiechi spoke during the festival.
“This is an opportunity for FIFA to highlight organisations that are supporting us day in and day out, over many years, using football to tackle social issues. It’s also a fantastic opportunity for the young people who have been chosen because of their leadership potential and commitment to drive positive change,” added Addiechi.
Many legends of the game such as Karina LeBlanc (Canada), Roberto Carlos (Brazil), Christian Karembeu (France), Stipe Pletikosa (Croatia) and Dimitry Sennikov (Russia) attended the festival and interacted with the children, passing valuable tips as well.
Kenyan lawyer and peace activist Fatuma Adan, who led a delegation from the Horn of Africa Development Initiative, introduced the programme “Shoot to score, not to kill” to help break the vicious cycle of violence in northern Kenya caused due to trible violence.
“It’s about taking away the AK47 and replacing it with a ball,” explained Adan.
“There’s a curriculum that goes along with the league. After the games, we have a dialogue on issues around violence and gender. Football makes it easier to get through to young people, and it has the power to connect beyond colour, tribe, race, religion.”
Adan has helped girls take up football at least as a hobby, while also raising awareness about taboo topics such as female genital mutilation (FGM).
“It’s very rare to see Muslim women playing football. Growing up, because of culture and religion, no girl was allowed to play sport. As a Muslim woman, I wanted to open doors for others. We are also working to break the silence on issues we’re not allowed to talk about. FGM is illegal, but it’s still happening, it’s hidden. We can bring this issue out through football. We’ve broken the silence, then hopefully we will get to the point where we will stop it,” Adan added.
From India, Bengaluru’s Amreen Taj had never got the opportunity to travel abroad until she got an opportunity with the ‘Dream a Dream Foundation’, an NGO that empowers young people from vulnerable backgrounds to overcome adversity and flourish.
“It’s the first time I went on a plane. I can’t believe I’m in Russia, I’m so happy to be here,” said Taj.
During the festival, a unique methodology called football3 has been drawn up that the teams have followed so far. According to it, mixed teams will be made who decide the rules before they play and then come together at the final whistle to reflect on their behaviour, with goals and fair play points counting towards the final score.
