Building Self-Confidence and Breaking Barriers

Deepak is a 13-year-old student in 7th grade in Gujarat, but mostly, he is an enthusiastic football player. This is a recent development: His daily routine used to consist of studying, eating, and staying in the hostel at night. However, when the sport programme of the Youth Football Club Rurka Kalan (YFC) and the initiative From Field to Fanshop started at his school, Deepak and his friends started attending regular trainings and even travelling to away games. 

“Sport has become an important part of our lives. We have learned how to play football and love spending our time with the ball!” For Deepak, the training sessions mean more than learning a sport – they also offer structure, discipline, and valuable life lessons. He finally feels like he is making the most of his life: “We train every day, and our coach teaches us all the important things about football.”

Together with the other students, Deepak helped to prepare the pitch for regular trainings. They cut the grass, built the goal posts and clean away trash, stones, and little branches before every game. This teaches the students a sense of responsibility for their environment. 

Balancing sport and school

Deepak‘s friends have also noticed that football can bring about positive changes in daily routines. “We used to just drop our trash here and there, use bad words, and generally pay each other less respect”, he explains. “But that has changed now. I can see that my friends are more confident, more polite, and more disciplined since the trainings have started.”

With the sport initiative, Deepak was able to participate in a football tournament called Khel Mahakumbh, which offered him a glimpse of how to combine sport and school: “Last year, we trained so much that we neglected our studies. But this time, we want to find a balance between school and football – while still aiming to win, of course!”

Boys and girls play together  

The football trainings have an additional benefit: They sensitise children and young adults for gender equality. In the long term, this will help to break barriers in society. “Boys and girls never used to play together at my school. But now, we all play as a team. Our trainer has explained that there shouldn’t be any differences between boys and girls, and we all participate in the activities.”

Speaking to Deepak, it becomes clear how the football programme has enabled him and his friends to gain new perspectives and to co-create changes in society. He is confident about his future: “I will be successful, both at school and at football.” His new values, a sense of discipline and the appreciation of gender inequality will help him achieve this vision.