Football for Future, Santo Domingo

The local partner organization was founded in 2010 to give Haitian refugee children and young people in the suburbs of Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic, a better future. With its own sports and education center, the project has since been able to offer over 2,000 young people a safe haven where they can find support and guidance. The prerequisite for participation is attending school or vocational training. In return, the children and young people receive meals, targeted homework supervision and soccer training.

Soccer, a steadily growing sport in the Dominican Republic, provides the children with a meaningful leisure activity and at the same time promotes their social integration. However, the existing soccer pitches are in dire need of renovation. A modern artificial turf pitch and an improved irrigation system are urgently needed in order to continue the project regardless of the weather conditions and to enable the children to play sport safely.

The project makes an important contribution to keeping vulnerable children and young people away from negative influences such as drugs, prostitution and crime. It creates a protected environment that gives young people space to develop prospects and build a better future off the streets. The combination of education, sport and social support sustainably improves their living conditions. At the same time, the offer promotes social cohesion and creates equal opportunities for girls and boys in a society characterized by machismo.

The planned renovation of the sports grounds is an indispensable basis for continuing the organization’s valuable work in the long term. This will open up new prospects for more children and young people in the coming years – for a life full of hope, opportunities and community.