How children can benefit from playing the beautiful game

It has been said that football has a universal power: a unique ability to unite people, to break down barriers and to inspire people to play collectively from diverse walks of life. The beautiful game can have a positive effect on an individual’s development socially, their education and health – and for children in particular.

Any opportunity children can get to play football will not only provide them with hours of fun and entertainment, but it will henceforth teach them essential life skills, which will no doubt prove to be real assets in the professional working world. For instance, qualities such as team work, confidence boosting, dealing with conflict or disappointment in a calm and collected manner, self-discipline and pride – all found deeply embedded within children who play football on a regular basis.

 

What football can do for girls

Research conducted by The Union of European Football Associations (UEFA), the administrative body for association football in Europe, released in May 2017 suggests that football can have a far greater and positive impact on the self-confidence of teenage girls than any other sport. In the largest study of its kind, with 4,128 respondents in total, UEFA discovered 80% of teenage girls presented more confident behaviour due to playing and being part of a football team. As well as this, 54% of young female football players said they agreed or strongly agreed with the statement: “I am less concerned what others think about me”, compared with just 41% who regularly played other sports.

In short, the research provided by UEFA identifies encouraging insights into football and it’s benefits on young girls, which is set to see a significant sizable growth across Europe over the next few years. The Union of European Football Association’s women’s football advisor, Nadine Kessler, comments that: “This study shows that girls who play football have a greater self-confidence than those who don’t play the game. Drawing upon my own experience, I can’t emphasise enough how important this is.”

Since EUFA launched its Women’s Football Development Programme in 2010, the game has gone from strength to strength and expanded across Europe and, with many of the 55 UEFA member associations investing more time, energy and resources into the game, elite women’s football has improved tenfold. One newly launched campaign titled “Together #WePlayStrong”, aims to create football into the number one sport for girls and women by 2022 – a ground breaking initiative by the organisation. The #WePlayStrong scheme highlights that a relationship to the sport may have the power to push girls further in the footballing world, if they wish to participate.

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What football can do for boys

As well as girls, football can be a crucial tool for boys and young men to develop too, in a variety of different ways. The suicide rate amongst men is exceptionally high, with the Office for Nation Statistics (ONS) publishing startling results that men in the UK aged 20 to 49 are more likely to die from suicide than any other cause of death. It is the reality that many men who feel suicidal, and choose to commit suicide, had no previous contact with any support groups. Encouraging men to be more open about their mental health is seen as a widespread problem that doctors, academics, various charities and celebrity campaigners are trying to tackle as soon as possible, with the implementation of several campaign’s such as #HeadsTogether and #ItsOkayToTalk.

However, for men with a passion for football, participating in the game can provide a way to comfortably express their thoughts, feelings and concerns in a relaxed and relatable environment. A project called “It’s a goal!” was developed eight years ago, following research which showed how men – particularly young men – were more at risk of suicide when depressed. They wanted to break the stigma and make people feel open to talking about their feelings by using football metaphors to encourage men to discuss their mental wellbeing and support each other in their recovery. So far, numerous clubs are involved, including Stoke City and Port Vale, citing a highly successful campaign.

Undeniably, encouraging men to speak about their mental health issues and wellbeing is incredibly difficult, particularly concerning the working class. In a study by Samaritans, men from the lowest social class and living in the most deprived areas were found to be up to ten times more likely to commit suicide than those in the highest social class from the most affluent areas. This is predominantly down to the reason that working-class men are rarely offered therapy and often don’t have access to, or the ability to, afford counselling sessions. Therefore, it is important to provide men with a non-threatening atmosphere and programme for working-class men to speak freely if something is wrong, without feeling judged for not being masculine enough.

It can help to talk about personal struggles through something which feels familiar and shared. Football is our national sport, which is universally watched throughout the country and the world, thus providing the perfect medium for all. For men, engagement in football leads to the opportunity to relax and open up, and may even encourage them to think about different avenues of help available which they may not have considered previously.

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What football can do worldwide

Similarly, children who find developing skills difficult, playing football may be the surprising answer to the problem, providing an opportunity for individuals to create a healthier mind, body and soul through the art of participation, determination and self-belief.

Ahead of the 2018 FIFA world cup, host country Russia has recently begun efforts to encourage more children with Down’s Syndrome to get into football. Irina Menshenina, Director of Development at Downside Up comments: “Children with Down’s Syndrome rarely play sport because often there aren’t the right conditions for them. Parents are even unaware that it is possible [to play].”

It makes sense that football is the perfect tool to assist and broaden communication and interaction skills; through being in a team children can learn to coordinate with each other and understand how to listen and take instructions from others – key lessons in life that they can learn and develop. Over the years, football has been educated in numerous topics, including HIV/AIDS, conflict resolution, gender equality, social integration of people who may have learning difficulties, peace building, youth leadership and the shaping of important life skills to help children later on in life, from school to the workplace.

To channel the beautiful game’s potential, and to continue the support of existing football-based community projects, FIFA launched the “Football for Hope” concept in 2005. It was launched in an attempt to help improve the lives and prospects of young people by offering funding, equipment and training to a number of organisations, as well as helping to organise events for experts and young leaders to meet up and learn from each other through exchanging ideas. Through this initiative, in the decade following its inauguration, FIFA has since benefitted 450 programmes run by 170 non-governmental organisations in an astounding 78 different countries, helping to serve hundreds of communities and tens of thousands of people across the world, helping to showcase football to be one of the most important sports for our children and younger generations have access to, all over the world.

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