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Rabat – The Global Foundation for Peace through Soccer, a US-based international non-profit, has said it will be organizing its humanitarian football mission “peace-through-soccer” in the Moroccan cities of Asfi and Marrakech.
A camp will take place in Marrakech from July 18 to 21, with another one following in Asfi from the 25th to the 28th, the foundation announced in a press release obtained by Morocco World News on Wednesday.
Rooted in “US-based sports diplomacy programs,” says a press release by the foundation, the camps are a part of a larger project under the name of “Moroccan Voices.”
The project aims to help challenged and underprivileged youth players in Morocco, with the foundation bringing free of charge high level football camps to disadvantaged areas.
“The youth participants will learn valuable soccer skills along with peace-building mechanisms to avoid violence and to boost self-esteem,” notes the press release.
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“Soccer is a wonderful peace-building mechanism, and the people of Morocco have welcomed us wholeheartedly, enthusiastically, and with open arms,” said Antonio Soave, Chairman of the Global Foundation for Peace through Soccer.
The camps will include football and sports training on the fields, in-classroom activities to combat extremism and radicalization, and training mentors, coaches, and teachers.
Five to ten coaches will train the young participants over the course of the event, with 45 to 50 players expected to participate in each city.
A global nonprofit based in Kansas City and Houston, the Foundation for Peace through Soccer aims to help underprivileged children throughout the world through the sport.
“If used properly, soccer can be used as a unifying force; it has been known to be a powerful tool to promote peace and understanding,” says the foundation’s website.
Suave, the foundation’s president, says football and sports in general provide young populations “something to grasp on to,” or a tool to establish effective relationships and develop positive sentiments, where such energy might instead be used for more problematic purposes if left unchecked.
