Saturday 24 March 2012

Changing lives through football

This is a 6 minute film made by Donkey Stone Films at the Homeless World Cup in Paris in 2011. 

The Homeless World Cup is a unique, pioneering social enterprise which exists to end homelessness. It uses football to energise homeless people to change their own lives. It operates through a network of over seventy national partners to support grass roots football programs and social enterprise development. Local Organizing Committees in host cities run a world-class, annual, international football tournament, uniting teams of homeless people from around the globe.

The first Homeless World Cup annual football tournament took place in
Graz in 2003 and welcomed eighteen nations. Today it includes 64 teams from 53 countries, including sixteen women’s teams. 

The impact is unprecedented. Over 70% of players change their lives for the better: they build their self esteem; come off drugs and alcohol; move into homes, jobs, education, training; repair relationships; become social entrepreneurs, coaches and players with pro or semi-pro football teams. The Homeless World Cup project involves over 50,000 homeless people throughout the year. 

The Australian team, the Street Socceroos, were the hosts of the Melbourne 2009 Homeless World Cup. The 2011 Cup was won by Scotland.

The film is surprisingly moving. Take a look.

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