Off the streets, these children dream of playing football in Rio

MANILA, Philippines – The road to Rio drew closer for Philppine team hopefuls of the Street Child World Cup (SCWC), in tryouts held on Sunday, February 9, at the Philippine Marine Corps camp in Taguig City.

Around 30 players from 6 different organizations in Metro Manila – Gawad Kalinga, Josie’s Angels, Haven, FC Leveriza, Mango Tree House, and payatas FC – were shortlisted while several other talents were discovered in the Davao region.

SCWC aims to raise awareness on the plight of street children across the world by bringing them together through footbal. The event will be held in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil in March 2014. The Philippine team will compete against 20 other countries in the tournament.

Team coach Roy Moore said the tournament aims to change the stigma on street children. He said street children are often “dehumanized and degraded,” even called names like ‘insects,’ ‘the plague,’ and ‘children of slaves.’

“What attracted me to this kind of work is realizing how these children were put in this situation (even if it’s not their) own fault. Many of them were born on the streets, or their parents died or abused them,” Moore added.

The theme for SCWC 2014 is “I am Somebody.” This reinforces the notion that every child is a human being with a unique story.

Football for building dreams

Some of the children competing in the tournament are orphans, while some ran away from their abusive homes; others, were born and raised in cemeteries.

Moore said football offered the children hope. (READ: #FootballforPeace: Indestructible balls for indestructible dreams)

“Football gave an environment where the kids could be kids again, have fun and play. More than that, being part of a team and seeing what they can achieve with the right attitude and determination has given the children back their ability to dream,” he added.

Some of the street children trained will be part of the United Football League (UFL Youth League) in March while others are being scouted for the men’s and women’s national youth teams, as well as  other universities and colleges. 

Problems with funding

Moore noted that finding funds for the children to participate in SCWC is difficult as donors have diverted funds to Typhoon Yolanda (Haiyan) rehabilitation. 

“After the typhoon all of the focus and funding suddenly switched to Tacloban and other affected areas” Moore said.

“It was understandable as this was the biggest disaster to hit for a long time and so many people needed immediate help. It did make things difficult though as potential sponsors suddenly switched elsewhere.”

With the support of Witsenburg, a Dutch company working in the Philippine coconut industry, the group is almost ready to fly to Rio. But Moore said there is need for more support especially for the training kits and allowances of the children.

“We could have been born into their situation but we were born into families with a home, where we didn’t have to worry about the next meal. That’s why I see it as our responsibility to help,” Moore said.

The final team, composed of 9 girls and 9 boys, will be announced in the 3rd week of February. – Rappler.com

Interested to support Team Philippines for the Street Child World Cup in their journey to Rio? Contact the Fairplay for All Foundation at ffafoundation@gmail.com for more information.