Australia
FLOATING FOOTBALL FESTIVAL BUOYS AUSTRALIA
Posted by Australia - 21.06.2011
Seven teams, made up of 56 homeless and marginalised men and women from across Australia competed in the Street Soccer Championships earlier this month.
The National Championships were held as part of The Big Issue Street Football Festival, an inaugural event that brought together people from all walks of life together for nine days of football at the floating pitches at Darling Harbour in Sydney.
The Big Issue CEO Steven Persson said: “All the players have shown great sportsmanship throughout the tournament and, most importantly, have demonstrated that they too can achieve great things when given the opportunity.”
Street Soccer Australia is a Homeless World Cup national partner and an initiative of The Big Issue Australia, involving males and females of all abilities, getting together once a week for soccer training and matches.
The program has engaged more than 3500 participants across 25 sites around the country since it was launched in 2007.
Outcomes for participants include re-connection with family and the community, improved confidence and self-esteem, improved physical and mental health and a sense of belonging.
The Australia team, nicknamed the Street Socceroo’s, will compete at the Paris 2011 Homeless World Cup, to be held at the Champs de Mars, Paris, France from 21-28 August 2011.