Where it All Began: From Liverpool to Paris and beyond - 12 tournaments and counting
By Rebecca Corbett
Photos: Stephen Hawkins
Liverpool is a football city. Whether you are a blue or a red, football is the beating heart of the city, and a love of the beautiful game is part of life for many Liverpudlians.
Stephen Hawkins is one of a group of proud Scousers who return year after year as part of the International Volunteer Squad at the Homeless World Cup, driven by his lifelong love of football and his belief in the good it can do.
“Everyone asks what’s your favourite Homeless World Cup and it’s always your first one. I’ve been a football fan all my life, I’ve played, I’ve coached and with my passion for working with homeless people and supporting them - to see people [coming together] from all over the world, it was just amazing.”
Since the Paris 2011 Homeless World Cup, Stephen has manned the Registration Desk, smiling and offering sweets and ‘good coffee’ to the teams who come to register throughout the day at the tournament. Although he jokes, it was an expensive offering in Oslo when packets of Haribo were £7 each!
His first tournament under the Eiffel Tower in the French capital set the tone, the location at the Champs de Mars was spectacular, but the players, the spirit and the friendships is what kept Stephen coming back year on year.
“It just fulfils everything, emotionally, spiritually – it's just joy isn’t it? And seeing joy in other people. There’s nothing better than seeing other people smile and kick a ball, score a goal. Cheering each other on. It just gets you. That’s why we do what we do.”
To date, Stephen has volunteered at 12 Homeless World Cups. He works full-time as the National Operations Manager for the Prison Fellowship, a Christian charity that works in prisons and each year he uses two weeks of his holiday to come to the tournament.
“There are 123 prisons in England and Wales, I think I’ve been to 93. I go round all the prisons and get our programmes running. The charity I work for, we have affiliations in 118 countries around the world.
“Wherever I go in the world [for the Homeless World Cup], I always ring the affiliated group and say, ‘Do you fancy a coffee?’, and if I can visit a prison I’d love to, but some do, some don’t.”
Growing up in Liverpool, Stephen explains, as might be the case in any major city, he knew a lot of people who were homeless or sofa surfing.
“Being passionate about football, I would say it kind of saved my life – I would never go out on a Saturday night and use drugs and drink because I knew I was playing football the next morning and I didn’t want to turn up under the influence. A lot of my friends would give up their Sunday football, but I always loved the camaraderie of being with the teams. Even if you got beaten 10-0, you’d still show up.”
His love of football fed into his professional life too, around twenty years ago Stephen was working as a support worker at a homeless hostel in Liverpool, when he and other support workers set up a mini football league where the hostels would compete against each other. The matches took place on pitches that Powerleague gave them for free in quieter times of the week.
They contacted Liverpool FC and Everton FC, and the Liverpool FA and got some funding and Liverpool Homeless Football Club was born. It celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2026 and still runs regular sessions for people to drop in, have a kick about, get some free food and access some support services such as a barber and a dentist.
“A lot of the guys in Homeless Football were all in their teens and now they’re in their forties and they’re pushing prams with their families of their own, still giving us a call and sending us a message on Facebook saying ‘I’ve just had another baby’, ‘I’ve just got a new job’. That’s just wonderful to hear that their lives have progressed. That’s the reward.”
“That’s one of the things I love at the Homeless World Cup, you meet them as a player and then the next year you see them as a coach and you think that’s brilliant. That is special.”
In the early days of Liverpool Homeless Football Club, they also worked closely with Manchester United FC and one coach, Louis, said something that stood out for Stephen: ‘These are not homeless people who are playing football, these are footballers who just happen to be homeless’ that, he explained, “put a different spin on it.”
The Oslo 2017 Homeless World Cup was a particularly special tournament for Stephen, because it was the first time his daughter Maisie came to volunteer at the tournament too.
This made the final day in the Norwegian capital particularly memorable.
“James [McMeekin] - Homeless World Cup Chief Operating Officer - came to me and said, ‘We’ve been so impressed with her, we’re going to make her Pitch Manager for the finals.’
“I remember when the final whistle went for the Men’s final with all the celebrations, and I was looking around and I couldn’t see her anywhere. The next minute she turned up and she was absolutely soaking wet. About five of them had decided to run off the quay and jumped into the fjord! She was like, ‘I had to do something to get rid of all that energy’. That joy of seeing that and her experiencing that was just amazing.”
She’s travelled with her dad and volunteered at (nearly) all the Homeless World Cups since, only missing Oslo in 2025 when she couldn’t get time off work. But they’ve already booked their flights to Mexico City.
In January, Stephen will return to Mexico City for the Homeless World Cup for the third time, Maisie for the second time.
“What an awesome place – the passion of the people, the beautiful friendships. That was a very special place to be. The atmosphere was electric.”
When the dates were announced that the 2026 tournament would take place in January due to availability of the iconic central square – the zócalo – Stephen was delighted.
There’s a tradition in the Sports team at the Homeless World Cup that if it’s someone’s birthday during the tournament, the team buys them a hosts’ national football shirt with their name on the back with a local twist – fellow Scousers and international volunteers Stephen Barton became ‘El Barto’ in Mexico City, and John Finnigan became ‘McFino’ in Glasgow.
“Now it’s going to fall on my birthday. It’s the final day! I always said, unless its Australia I won’t get a Homeless World Cup birthday, but I will this year!”
Coming back for his 13th tournament, Stephen has some advice for people coming to their first tournament: “Just embrace it, it goes so quick, embrace it from day one, from minute one, greet everyone with a smile. Cheer on every team and just enjoy it and go with it. Make the most of it and make sure you come back next year!”
From Liverpool to Mexico City, the Scousers at the Homeless World Cup will make sure that ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’.
Words: Rebecca Corbett
Photos: Stephen Hawkins
Our International Volunteer Squad for the tournament is currently full, but there are lots of ways you can get involved with and support the Homeless World Cup.
Buy a seat in the Impact Stadium – our virtual stadium helps us to continue the work we do. We are a registered charity, and your donations are vital to help keeping the Homeless World Cup going.
Come to a Homeless World Cup – The Homeless World Cup is free to attend and unticketed. We’d love to see you there and experience the action in person.
Follow us on social media and help us share the word – All our latest news and stories as well as highlights from tournaments past and present are shared on our social media platforms. Help us get the word out about how the Homeless World Cup is changing lives.
Fundraise for us – Do you have a challenge coming up and want to raise money for the Homeless World Cup? Get in touch. We’d love to have your support.
Partner with us – Are you a company or professional that is interested in using football to change lives? Get in touch. We’d love to hear from you.