South African team set to participate in the 2018 Homeless Street Soccer World Cup.

The 2018 Homeless Street Soccer World Cup is set to kick off soon and we have a South African team that will represent the nation on the international stage.

This wonderful initiative has grown beneath our radar for far too long. It is ingenious and possibly one of the best ways to address the issue of integrating the displaced people who live under bridges and in parks back in society.

What is the 2018 Homeless Street Soccer World Cup all about?

The purpose of this event is to find ways to integrate homeless people back into society. Moreover, it is to reshape the perception society has on the homeless.

Many people disregard homeless people, forming uneducated opinions on their circumstances and chalking their plight to “it’s his or her own doing. Nothing we do will help him or her out of the streets”.

The Homeless World Cup Foundation wants to remove this attitude from society. They explain their objective in running such an amazing project on their website.

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“When a person who is homeless gets involved in football, they build relationships; they become teammates who learn to trust and share. They have a responsibility to attend training sessions and games, to be on time, and to be prepared to participate. They feel that they are part of something larger than themselves.

“The sense of empowerment that comes from participating in street football helps people who are homeless see that they can change their lives; and our National Partner organisations give them the tools they need to do just that”.

When is the 2018 Homeless Street Soccer World Cup?

This year’s Homeless Street Soccer World Cup is set to be the 16th. Scores of participants and fans of the competition will flock to Zocalo, a city in Mexico from 13 November.

The competition will run until 18 November. The spokesperson for the Minister of Cultural Affairs and Sport, Stacy McLean provided a further explanation of what the competition is all about.

“The annual tournament brings together street football programmes from around the world, affording each player the opportunity to represent their respective nation with passion and pride.

“The tournament is a celebration of the work conducted by the Homeless World Cup Foundation and their national partners across the globe in attaining their mutual goal of seeking a better future for homeless individuals through soccer,” McLean wrote in the statement.

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South African team to participate in the 2018 Homeless Street Soccer World Cup

McLean, in her statement, revealed that South Africa would be participating in the international competition. Through a rigorous selection process, where homeless South African street soccer players were observed through community-based street soccer initiatives, they were able to isolate eight players who have been chosen to represent the country in Mexico.

These are the eight players that will make up Team South Africa in the 2018 Homeless Street Soccer World Cup from 13 November:

1. Thobela Gojo
2. Mogamat Mukhtaar Daniels
3. Siphiwo Botha
4. Tebogo Lawrence Yakobi
5. Rudi Pietersen
6. Telan Tarquin Jacobs
7. Bongani Mike Mooi
8. Jaydon Justin Speelman