Anszou Cissé is a young Senegalese migrant in Italy, who will soon be evicted from the Castelnuovo di Porto CARA reception center and sent away. He is also the pride and glory of the local football club, which is trying to keep him against all odds.
When a community football team needs recruits and a group of refugees needs a new home, they turn out to be a perfect fit. But first, there is ignorance and fear and prejudice to be overcome. That’s the basis of an Australian film featured in this year’s Global Migration Film Festival. The theme of building understanding through sports works well on screen, but in a climate of growing Islamophobia, how well does it work in reality?
Sport can play a crucial role in helping migrant children and teenagers overcome fears and trauma. Over 70 percent of participants in a sports program run by the charity of football giant FC Barcelona "showed significant improvement," a study found.
The "Football for People" week across Europe will look at how the sport can help solve problems linked to mass migration in this period.
Christ Wamba fled Congo Brazzaville in 2015 and arrived at the Moria refugee camp on the Greek island of Lesbos a few months later. There, he had only one goal: to become a professional basketball player. His gamble paid off: today he is a member of Aris Thessaloniki, a renowned Greek basketball club.
The Olympic Refugee Team gives athletes who fled violence and war a chance to show off their skills. Here's a look at what the team does and what's in store for them when they compete in 2020.
The multi-ethnic soccer team AfroNapoli is debuting this year in the Italian top amateur league. Its strength lies in diversity, the team's president says.
Three years ago, Saeid Fazloula fled from Iran to Germany. Now, the refugee is competing in the Canoeing World Championship and he's determined to win a gold medal for Germany.
One of the biggest stars at the 2016 Summer Olympics did not compete under her country's flag, but under the flag of her fellow refugees. From there, she took Rio by storm. In her recent memoir, Yusra Mardini shares her story in hopes of inspiring others.
Some of the players on the pitch in Russia had extra obstacles to overcome before taking to the world stage. Among them are two refugees from former Yugoslavia and one Nigerian.
Two young migrants in Italy are training for triathlon contests with the help of a project supported by the Tuscan region to promote social inclusion and employment through sport.
European football’s governing body, UEFA, has announced another 50,000 euros to support the German Football Association's program for refugees. Meanwhile the German government is set to continue to spend millions of euros on a long-running project aimed at promoting integration through sport.