FOOTBALL FOR UNITY
In celebration of the 60th anniversary of the UEFA European Football Championship, Dublin hosted a Football for Unity Festival to showcase the potential of football as an educational tool which can bring communities together and promote social inclusion for newcomers to Ireland.
The Festival took place at a range of venues across Dublin’s north-east inner from Monday 14th June until Friday16th July 2021 alongside EURO 2020 and invoking the spirit of the Gloucester Diamond.
UEFA EURO 2020
The delayed UEFA EURO 2020 was held in 2021 in 11 different cities across 11 European countries. The unique multi-country structure provided an ideal platform to showcase the potential of Football as an educational catalyst to lead to positive social inclusion outcomes for third-country nationals. Although Dublin was no longer a host city for EURO 2020, it remained one of the seven cities chosen to host Football for Unity festivals.
Sport Against Racism Ireland (SARI), in conjunction with local stakeholders NEIC, UNHCR, Irish Refugee Council, Dublin City Council, the FAI and Bohemian FC, hosted a Football for Unity festival incorporating 7-a-side football tournaments across the north-east inner city of Dublin, as well as a Youth Forum and a Legacy programme of training nights.
FOOTBALL TOURNAMENTS
The tournaments were free to enter and open to various age groups. Matches took place place at four all-weather astro pitches across the north-east inner city.
These were: Larkin College, O’Connell School, Hubert Fuller Park at St Mary’s East Wall Youth Centre and St. Lawrence O’Toole Recreation Centre. Other pitches, including the Commons street MUGA at Mariners Port, were used for training nights.
Teams were 7-a-side with a squad of 12 players allowed. Each match comprised two halves of 25 minutes.
Matches were played Monday-to-Friday nights between 7pm and 9pm. Teams were scheduled to play at least one match per week.
Tournament age groups were as follows:
Men: 18 - 25, Under-18, Under-16
Women: 18 - 25 and Under-18
Training nights were also organised, as well as a mini-tournament for the Under-14 age group.
Click here for the Tournament Age Rules
The project was co-funded by the European Commission in the framework of their Asylum, Migration and Integration Fund (AMIF).
FOOTBALL FOR UNITY YOUTH FORUM
We were delighted to welcome lots of youngsters to join us on Wednesday, August 25th, 2021, for the Football for Unity Youth Forum, held at The Law Society in Blackhall Place, Dublin 7.
As part of the forum, we organised a football3 tournament and other activities for boys and girls aged 12-16 — including Capoeira, Gaelic football and Boxing training.
Youths aged 17-25 enjoyed taking part in the Young Leaders forum and helped to run the day’s activities.
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