Football association champions refugee girls, female coaches at Zaatari camp

AMMAN — In celebration of International Women's Day, Madrid-based LaLiga private sports association on Saturday and Sunday paid tribute to all the girls and female coaches who take part in its Zaatari Social Project, which aims to improve young refugees' quality of life by using football as a tool to transmit the positive values found in sports.

In honour of the occasion, women and girls “were able to enjoy a very special and enriching experience” through different activities, games and football matches, as well as visits from some local organisations, with the aim of promoting equal rights and opportunities between men and women, according to a statement by LaLiga.

“Today, we celebrate the power and the talent of all women around the world. With our partners in Zaatari refugee camp, we promote young girls’ life skills every day and give them the opportunity to develop fearlessly,” said JF Cecillon, CEO of the Asian Football Development Project Global (AFDPG), which collaborated to establish the project.

LaLiga instructors Izzat Jandali and Javier Garcia have spent the last 15 months at the camp leading sports and social activities, including directing and supervising the teams and the coaches, according to the statement. 

“From the start of LaLiga’s social activities at Zaatari, we noticed that the young girls of the camp had excellent skills, though they had been excluded from any training,” said Jandali in the statement. 

“We therefore concentrated on this and increased the number of female coaches and players by providing all athletic necessities required,” he added, noting that players and coaches “were able to prove themselves through sportsmanship”.

“We are very happy with these results and will continue to work on encouraging them and increasing their skills,” Jandali said.

 Garcia added that the instructors aim to help girls “feel the important role they play, to emphasise their self-esteem and their athletic skills”. 

Since the LaLiga coaches arrived at the Zaatari refugee camp, some 90km northeast of Amman, a plan of action has been implemented to break down barriers and promote gender equality. Specific training sessions for female coaches and referees, as well as training for girls, have generated women's team sign-ups in the LaLiga Za'atari competition, which now has 16 teams, according to the statement.

“The huge motivation and responsibility of the participants in the project over recent months has generated a real change in the lives of these women and girls and is the embodiment of excitement and hope for them all,” the statement read.

Zaatari Social Project was established by the department for sporting projects and the LaLiga Foundation in collaboration with the AFDPG.

LaLiga is a private sports association composed of the 20 teams of LaLiga Santander and 22 of LaLiga SmartBank, responsible for the organisation of these national professional football competitions. 

In the 2018/2019 season, LaLiga reached more than 2.7 billion people globally. With headquarters in Madrid, Spain, it is present in 55 countries through 11 offices and 46 delegates, according to the statement.