Greek women’s compassion catches first FIFPRO Award
The women of team Greece won the first medals of this year’s Homeless World Cup today, and they had nothing to do with scoring goals (although they did that, too!).
To celebrate acts of kindness, sportsmanship and fair play, the Homeless World Cup tournament hands out the FIFPRO Award every day.
An act of kindness during yesterday’s match against Zimbabwe was noted by the referee. After a player from Zimbabwe fell and hurt her head, a Greek player immediately came to help, temporarily stopping the game to ensure that her competitor was okay. This compassionate act was enough for the referee team to put the team forward for the first FIFPRO Award.
The Greek women were congratulated by Kasali Casal, former professional footballer and director of football on the popular series Ted Lasso. Together with members of the Greek embassy, he handed out medals and t-shirts to the delighted team.
“This tournament is not just about winning, but also about making sure that we take care of each other”, Casal told the team.
The 19-year-old Greek player Anastasia Patsiali said she was honoured to be part of the first team to receive the award.
“For me, fair play is the most important thing in this competition. We like to win, but more important is to earn respect and show it to others.”
It shows in simple things, said Patsiali: “We greet everyone, we cheer and dance together. Even if we don’t speak the same language, we can communicate.”
“Like in the players’ hotel, we played a card game with our team, and players from other countries saw it and joined in. Not everyone spoke English but we could still explain the game. You can play cards without words, just like football.”
Words by Danielle Batist | Photos by Donnie Nicholson