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Soccer Without Borders April 2020

Soccer Without Borders Launches Stay Home Spring Season

Today, Soccer Without Borders is excited to announce the launch of our first full Stay Home Spring Season!

Meeting the needs of the youth that we serve is our number one priority. In these uncertain times, many have had their structures and routines interrupted – their social interactions limited. We have moved fast to adapt our methods, and with this Stay Home Season, we will help our youth participants to: feel a sense of belonging alongside their teammates and coaches, build a routine that is physically and mentally healthy, and have fun moments to look forward to each week.

We have developed a game plan that includes a collective set of resources and activities that will be used in SWB programs across the USA, enabling cross-program competitions and activities like never before. SWB practice activities will still touch on areas of team building, skill development, academic support, physical and mental health, and strengthening relationships. This season, which will run from today through May 22, 2020, includes team practices and games (all virtual!), individual player check-ins especially for those who don’t have access to team practices, equipment support, and referrals for families experiencing food insecurity, needing to file for unemployment, and/or rent difficulty. At the end of the Stay Home Season, team and individual prizes will be awarded, including: Highest Participation, Most Creative, Motivator Award, Spirit Award, Positivity Award, and Most Improved Award.

Regardless of exterior circumstances, SWB is committed to meeting our players where they are, and that is what this Stay Home Season is all about. The work of creating a space for connectivity and belonging is now more important than ever.

MAKE A DONATION

During the pandemic, Soccer Without Borders is actively reaching vulnerable youth through virtual programming, mentoring, food and material support, education and health resources, translation, and referrals to social services.

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We recognize that the effects of Covid-19 are substantial and that the need is vast. If you are able, please consider a donation to sustain our work with underserved youth.Donate Now

Soccer Without Borders is a registered 501(c)(3) with EIN 20-3786129. To donate through a DAF, by mail, or by starting a fundraising campaign, click here.  

A Game Plan for Covid-19
After weeks of taking changes as they came and triaging needs of our participants, families, and communities, we have shifted our approach into a Covid-19 Game Plan centered around combatting youth isolation by Creating Belonging.

The effects of youth isolation are significant mentally, physically, academically, and economically. While we are maintaining physical distance to protect the safety and health of our communities, we must not distance ourselves from the needs of our young people, locally and globally, who are most acutely affected.

Too often, the voices of young people are not heard; their losses aren’t easily quantified, and their unmet needs are invisible to the public eye. In order to address their needs, we must first make sure that every young person is reached, connected, and knows that they are seen.

That’s what Creating Belonging is all about. It’s about taking the first and most necessary step to make sure that we can navigate this uncertainty together by staying connected as a community.
Learn More About the Game Plan

OUR GAME PLAN

The stakes are high: 9 out of 10 youth worldwide are out of school. While the consequences of this isolation on mental and physical health, financial, and educational outcomes are not fully quantified yet, we see these challenges every day and the ways that existing inequities have been amplified that much more.
With schools, parks, and fields where we operate closed, and social distancing orders in effect, we are creating belonging by triaging and directly addressing the needs of our participants and families when we can, and making referrals and supporting translation when needs fall outside of our scope. 
We serve thousands of participants every year in an out-of-school time context. This means we are uniquely suited to meet youth where they are and provide the essential information, structure, connectivity, and encouragement to navigate these unprecedented times.​
That’s Creating Belonging.

Supporting Youth & Families During Covid-19

1,225 SWB participants directly reached through remote programming

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515 Female SWB participants engaged in remote programming 

402 participants engaged in mentoring activities outside of team programming

119 teams participating in Stay Home Seasons 

from five countries

538 equipment and materials distributed to youth

569 families reached for food delivery and referrals 

https://www.soccerwithoutborders.org/covid-19

https://www.soccerwithoutborders.org/