SWB Uganda Leaders Participate in First Ever streetfootballworld East Africa Network Forum

SWB leaders with sfw staff George Springborg and Margaret Belewa

Kigali, Rwanda

From October 2-5th, SWB Uganda leaders Raphael Murumbi, Olivier Matanda, Jean-Christophe Moran, Katy Nagy and Sara Chehrehsa partcipated in streetfootballworld's first ever East Africa Members forum in Kigali, Rwanda. The conference brought together 13 organizations that are using soccer for social development in the region, and provided a great opportunity for SWB Uganda leaders to learn, grow and share. Below are some highlights and pictures from the week. We are very grateful to host Esperance and streetfootball world for organizing this great event!

Day 1

Today, Rapha, Olivier, Jean-Christophe, Sara, and Katy met in Kigali for the start of the Street Football World Network’s  East Africa Meeting and Forum.  The day’s events included the opening of the Kimisagara Football for Hope Center.  The center was built for an NGO in Kimisagara, Association de Jeunes Sportifes de Kigali (“Esperance”) as part of FIFA’s 2010 World Cup social initiative to build 20 Football For Hope Centers throughout Africa.  Featured guest speakers included Rwanda’s Minister of Sport and Culture, representatives from FIFA and Street Football World, the German ambassador to Rwanda, and the president of the Rwanda Football Federation.  A match was played on the new 40 x 20 meter turf pitch that was part of the Football for Hope Center.  The day concluded with a reception that all participants enjoyed as they watched a concert with the community.  Tomorrow begins the workshops on anti-violence.

Day 2

Today was the first full day of the Street Football World conference in Kigali. After an introductory meeting, the young leaders (Olivier, Jean-Christophe, Sara, and Katy) separated from the directors (Rapha).  In the Young Leaders group, we discussed Football Amahoro (football for peace), or Football3, and the process that Esperance, the host organization, utilizes to impact the communities in which it works.  Football3 is a method for using football (soccer) to reach youth and engage in discussions about important issues such as violence and conflict—specifically relevant to the region in which the tournament/football3 program operates.  After discussing the Football3 theory, the young leaders applied the concepts of the Football3 program, including skits, discussions, and play. The Football3 play introduced methods of insuring fair play and gender equality.  Each 6 vs. 6 Football3 match required the two teams to field 3 girls and 3 boys at all times.  Other concepts of Football3 are that only goals scored by girls count, and the final score is determined by the football outcome, the skits performed, and a quiz that is given after the match.  During the day, the directors presented about the work that their organizations do in an effort to prevent violence. In the evening, they joined the Football3 program.  Overall, it was a very enjoyable and productive day for all SWB representatives.  The conference is providing the opportunity for the development of many mutually beneficial relationships between SWB Uganda and the other members of the Street Football World Network. We are excited to see what tomorrow brings!  

Day 4

Friday, October 5th was the last day of the Street Football World Conference in Kigali.  The day consisted of various discussions and presentations about anti-violence through football.  Each of the network members, including Soccer without Borders, presented on their organization and the way anti-violence is achieved through their programs.  Raphael gave a very good presentation about SWB Uganda, explaining the way SWB’s five core activities promote peace.  Olivier took part in a demonstration of Football Forum Theatre, and later in the day he presented his story about the way football influenced his life.  Thanks to Street Football World for inviting us to this conference! We all learned a great deal about the other network members and will certainly use this experience to better serve SWB’s community.  We are looking forward to hosting a football3 tournament in the near future!

by Mady Hernandez

Sometimes when we expect to achieve something and it doesn’t pan out the way we envisioned, we have to look past the setbacks and make light of the situation that ends up happening. 

Kelly had been contacting the Nicaraguan national team over a month before the intended date for the workshop. In the past the women of the national team were like celebrities, nearly IMPOSSIBLE to get a hold of. Kelly managed to do the "impossible", she was able to get confirmation from five women of Nicaragua’s national team to agree to come to the FSF office and participate in our Inspiration workshop. All month we had been anticipating them coming and I kept thinking how cool of an opportunity it would be for the girls to meet real, professional futbolistas.

The day came and I was sitting in my room doing some work thinking when I realized that I hadn’t heard what the plan was for the players' arrival. So I gave Kelly a call to see what the situation was and I found out that the national team had bailed, that “something had come up.”  There were only a few hours to spare; the girls were arriving at 2pm in the office. 

I didn’t get to hear all of the behind the scenes action until later but basically Kelly and Larkin re-thought, re-designed, and put their problem-solving skills to the test. By 2pm, in front of us were Cesar, Hassell and Helen, three of our very own FSF coaches, leaders, and amazing soccer players.  

Kelly got the group ready to go with a technical skills warm-up to Latino pop, Pitbull, and Beyonce. Kelly has some serious moves (the girls may or may not have been able to follow exactly). We then all gathered around Cesar, Hassell and Helen who graciously agreed to be the leaders of the inspiration talk. The girls asked them questions like, “what position do you play?”  “do you enjoy being a coach” and probably the most interesting “have you ever gotten mad at an opponent during a game and what did you do?” The coaches’ responses were all honest and raw. It was incredible to watch the girls quickly raise their hands to ask their coaches to questions. We already knew that the girls look up to their coaches but seeing them so well engaged and interested in their coaches responses reconfirmed their admiration even more. Nothing but inspiring people filled that Friday afternoon!

SWB girls gear up for the International Day of the Girl

From Granada to Kampala, Boston to Oakland, girls in SWB Programs around the world are getting ready for the first-ever International Day of the Girl.  At Soccer Without Borders, we believe that being a part of a soccer team can be a gamechanger for girls in every arena, from their classrooms, to their homes, to their communities, to their social circles, to their future careers, and beyond.

Researchers tend to agree. They love to focus on some serious stuff, like the obstacles girls face and the way girls' participation in sport links to: 

Increased self-esteem

Lower rates of obesity

Lesser chance of suicide

Lower rates of drug use

Improved mental health

Lower rates of pregnancy

Improved body image

Lower rates of smoking

to name a few...

Why do girls in SWB programs play? We thought it'd be fun to highlight a few answers.  Follow along as SWB girls share why they play and why other girls should have the chance to play too!

Let's get it started then... Meet Kaylee:

Day of the Girl- Kaylee from Soccer Without Borders on Vimeo.

A Summer Wrap-Up from SWB Chicago

This summer saw Soccer Without Borders launch a new program in the city of Chicago.  Chicago has a fantastic refugee community and seemed ripe for a new SWB program.  The SWB-Chicago program hosted a Girls’ Camp in July and a Boys’ Camp in August.  Each camp was held on Saturday mornings at Warren Park, a great Chicago Park District location on the north-side of the city in the Roger’s Park neighborhood.  

Some highlights from the Summer:

Refugee Communities
SWB-Chicago began building its relationship with the Chicago refugee communities by helping to facilitate the World Refugee Day soccer tournament in June. The tournament was a lot of fun and served as an excellent opportunity to build friendships with the community and the agencies who serve them. Program Director Jason had a great time running around with the teams and connected with many leaders of the Chicago refugee communities.

Following the tournament, SWB-Chicago worked close with Catholic Charities and World Relief-Chicago to connect further with Chicago refugee families and youth.  Both organizations provided crucial support for the launch of our summer programs and offered us the opportunity to meet and develop new  relationships with many amazing families.

SWB-Chicago Community
Beginning in February, the SWB-Chicago team began to build connections and partners with like-minded individuals and organizations.  In June we hosted a fundraiser at Fado Irish Pub with the support of Windy City Wanderers that was wildly successful.  We met the fundraising goal for this event  and connected with many supporters and future volunteer coaches.

By the time July 7th came, we had a great core of supporters and volunteers eager to help SWB-Chicago host its first-ever camps.  The volunteers came from college soccer programs at Illinois-Wesleyan, Saint Mary’s University, the College of William and Mary, and East Grand Rapids HS.  Additionally, we had many great volunteers from the Chicago community come out and join our camps.

In addition to our coaching corps, SWB-Chicago had a great behind-the-scenes team that built the framework for the summer.  Matthew Lemberg stepped into the role of Staff Development and Outreach intern.  Our coaching and support staff for the summer  was the direct result of the hard work Matthew put in during the summer to connect with and build a dedicated collection of volunteers.

Summer Camps
Hoping to set SWB roots in Chicago and build connections within the refugee communities, SWB-Chicago decided to host its camp at Warren Park.  Warren Park is located in the heart of the Rogers Park, one of the nation’s most diverse neighborhoods.  The camps were took place every Saturday morning in July and August.  Warren Park and the Chicago Park District were great hosts for the camps and will be great partners for future SWB-Chicago events!


Girls’ Camp
The Girls’ Camp got off to a slow start with only four girls on our first day.  By the second day of camp, participation doubled and kept the energy for the rest of camp.  All of the girls attending camp were between the ages of 14 and 18.  The medium-sized roster really allowed for the coaches to connect with the girls immediately and consistently throughout the month.  Each day involved a combination of small play soccer stations, team-building, free game play, and a lot of fun!


Boys’ Camp 
After a successful Girls’ camp, the Boys’ camp kicked-off with a bang and didn’t look back.  On the first day of camp there were 16 boys in attendance and continued to grow for the rest of the summer.  The boys camp was for a younger age bracket, 10 - 14, which added a bit more goofiness (in a good way!) to camp.  The boys loved playing around and by the end of the four camp sessions they were all really excited about starting a SWB-Chicago boys team.  


The Future of SWB-Chicago
With some luck and hard work, we hope to be in a place in 2013 to be organizing teams and larger program.  The Chicago program is still very much in its infancy.  We are currently in the planning phases for a small winter camp.  As we grow, we would like to build into a larger full-time program that hosts academic, youth, and family development programs in addition to soccer.  As our connections with the Chicago refugee communities grow and our funding options expand, we hope to build on the roots we laid this past summer.

A Season of "Inspiration"

by Mady Hernandez

It’s official; the soccer season in Granada has begun and is well on its way to the annual Global Peace Games! The Global Peace Games celebrate the United Nations' International Day of Peace by encouraging communities to host tournaments/games that represent the unity, friendship and peace between nations and across the world through sport. Futbol Sin Fronteras is registered to play on October 13, 2012. We are working hard to have the games at the American Nicaragua School (ANS) in Managua, something special for the girls and their families to do together, and a huge incentive for the girls to keep working hard. In effort to inspire (and surprise!) the girls, Kelly has invited Nicaragua’s national women’s soccer team to come to Granada at the end of September for some special activities. Apparently they hard to get a hold of, so hopefully they will come…they could really spark some fire for the Estrellas and the Mariposas right before the big tournament and make this year’s Global Peace Games the best yet. ¡Vamos a ver! The Veteranas in Catarina for their first fall game

The Estrellas have been playing in friendly matches every weekend against an all boys team from Sports College, and a co-ed team ‘Las Águilas’ coached by another youth coach in the area. The teams have all traded wins and losses, but the most exciting match for the Estrellas was a 1-0 win against the boy’s team a couple weekends ago in their round robin mini tournament. The swell of confidence and pride in their team was so visible on their faces, and they walked home with their heads held high after taking a second place finish overall. More wins to come in their future! The Veteranas had their first game last Sunday and came away with a 2-1 win. It was totally worth the 6 hours the team spent together to make it to and from the game! The Mariposas still haven’t had any competition but they are so in love with soccer that they simply enjoy playing against each other, what a relief!  On one of my house visits recently I asked, “How do you think we can improve activities at Futbol Sin Fronteras?” and the Mariposa’s response, “MORE SOCCER!!!” Can’t wait to see my little butterflies rock the field against their opponents, all in good time.

Keep posted to see if we get a hold of these national team players AND get to play at ANS! 

Coach Cesar at practice

Members of Las Mariposas speaking at school