English Version

UEFA partner wins Sport for Peace award

The Open Fun Football Schools project backed by UEFA has carried off a prestigious award at the Beyond Sport Summit in London.

Funding and support
Open Fun Football Schools, run by UEFA’s social responsibility partner the Cross Cultures Project Association (CCPA), won the Sport for Peace Award, with CCPA managing director Anders Levinsen collecting the prize from former British prime minister Tony Blair at a ceremony in London on 9 July. As one of six Beyond Sport Community Awards winners, the Open Fun Football Schools will receive funding and long-term support to help the project move forward and become more sustainable.

Grassroots football
Open Fun Football Schools promote tolerance and social cohesion by playing football in grassroots schools for children from conflicting population groups. They have been organised by CCPA since 1998, starting in war-torn Bosnia-Herzegovina before expanding their activities through the Balkan region and beyond. CCPA is a politically independent, non-profit and humanitarian organisation operating from Copenhagen but with local branch offices in the various countries where Open Fun Football Schools are implemented.

Changing lives
The Beyond Sport Community Awards, the winners of which were announced on the final day of a three-day summit, recognise how sport can drive significant social transformation and have a significant impact in changing the lives of communities. Open Fun Football Schools, which had been short-listed for the Peace Award in April, are active in Bosnia-Herzegovina, FYR Macedonia, Serbia, Montenegro, Croatia, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Armenia, Moldova, Lebanon and Iraq. The aim of the CCPA projects is to encourage reconciliation and integration among people through dialogue and collaboration.