What is Football for impact?

FOOTBALL4iMPACT is a unique opportunity to combine young people from very different nationalities and socio-economic backgrounds and encourage them to come together through their common love of football. This project, although in its infancy, is one that is envisioned to occur on a yearly basis. The main aim is to provide young people in London and Switzerland a chance to connect and learn about pertinent topics and how these can be strengthened and alleviated through involvement in sport. The programme will be hosted primarily at Hackney Marshes and is a key component of a council wide strategy to improve the outcomes of young people aged 16 – 18 years old in the borough in the main. The global reach and interest in football lends to attracting and engaging with young people predominantly from a cross section of society but often with those most marginalised from mainstream opportunities.  Football will clearly be used as the platform for engagement and to meet the wider council objective.

PHASE 1:

In the first instance, the week-long symposium in October, will consist of a series of seminars, talks and discussions/workshops for young people based around the theme of mental health and leadership. Professionals in their field will lead such workshops and will give insight into their own experiences whilst participating in question and answer sessions. In addition, young people from different boroughs of London and Switzerland will interact on a level playing field via 5 a side tournaments, training sessions and a final match day lead by former professional and international football players

PHASE 2:

In the second phase of the project, the plan is to offer 15 young people from London for an all-expenses paid exchange to Switzerland. The young people who will be selected will be from a financially disadvantaged background yet show extraordinary progress during the week spent together in London. The trip to Switzerland will involve similar activities around the theme of football and it is hoped that with the involvement and support of UEFA and other Swiss based institutions, this could be a trip of a lifetime for some of the outstanding London participants.