During the 2016/17 school year we began a pilot project Favela Street Connect in partnership with high school Mundus College in Amsterdam West. We developed an 8 week program to train a class of young refugees to become football coaches. With funding from the King Baudouin Foundation we were able to improve and continue this project.
In the Connect program young people learn the importance of teamwork, they learn how to use football as ‘conversation starter’, organize football activities and also to be an inspiring role model for others. We connect the class with their peers and face them with a challenge outside their comfort zone. For example, last November the class of coaches organized a football tournament during a special Favela Street Sports Day for 400 students of the Bonavetura College. It was a massive success.
The program will run til February 2019 we connect the coaches to amazing Nike employees in a buddy system and they organize another football tournament at the IJburg College.
