Underprivileged people from eight nations on Monday began competing in a “Homeless Euro 2024” tournament running parallel to the main championship and intended to share the joys of soccer with those who have suffered on the street.
Teams from Belgium, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Lithuania, Poland, Romania and Sweden paraded into Hamburg’s fan zone at the start of the week-long event organized by a local charity and funded by donations.
“Football has given me a second chance,” said Mario La Torre, 24, recounting years of criminality and drug-taking in Stockholm before turning his life around. “Look at me: Now I’m shooting balls, but before I was shooting other things.”
Photo: AFP
Without the glitz and glamour of the main Euro 2024, the alternative version started in front of a smattering of people at a small pitch inside the fan zone. Four-person teams of both men and women played games of seven-minute halves.
Johan Grasshoff, one of the organizers of the event with the charity Anstoss (German for “kickoff”), said it was important to highlight the issue of homelessness to those who did not understand it.
“People often say it is their own fault if people are homeless, but that is not true. The main factor is the lack of housing and the high cost of rent,” he said. “We want to focus society on that, and for a few days all the players can forget about their problems and have some fun and gain some power for the future.”
Some of the participants have also participated in the “Homeless World Cup,” whose last edition was in the US.
“This is like my second family,” beamed Polish player Patryk Bialek, 24.
He said he had taken drugs for eight years and slept under a bridge before he entered rehabilitation, rebuilt his life and rediscovered a boyhood love of soccer.
“I can’t believe I’m playing again — and here,” he said, the day after the Polish national team had also played in Hamburg.
Manchester City have reached do-or-die territory in the UEFA Champions League earlier than expected ahead of what Pep Guardiola has described as a “final” against Club Brugge today. City have disproved the suggestion a new format to Europe’s top club competition would remove any jeopardy for the top clubs as Guardiola stares down the barrel of failing to make the Champions League knockout stages for the first time in his career. The English champions have endured a torrid season both in their English Premier League title defense and on the continent. A run of one win in 13 games, which included Champions League
Oklahoma City star Shai Gilgeous-Alexander on Sunday poured in 35 points as the Thunder grabbed a bounce-back 118-108 victory in Portland to push their NBA-best record to 37-8. The Thunder, surprised by the short-handed Dallas Mavericks on Thursday, fended off a late surge from the Trail Blazers to snap their four-game winning streak. Jalen Williams scored 24 points and Isaiah Joe added 16 off the bench. Center Isaiah Hartenstein, back after a five-game absence with a calf injury, added 14 points, 11 rebounds, six assists and a big block. The Western Conference leaders were under pressure late as Portland, trailing by 15 heading
Sumo is walking a “tightrope” as it prepares to stage events outside Japan for the first time in 20 years while also trying to preserve its ancient traditions, experts say. The sport is to hold exhibition tournaments in London in October and in Paris in June next year, the first time the Japan Sumo Association has been abroad since Las Vegas in 2005. Sports such as soccer, baseball and football play domestic games overseas in a bid to gain new fans in emerging markets. John Gunning, a former amateur sumo wrestler who commentates on the sport in English on Japanese television, says its
Cole Perfetti on Friday scored three goals for his first NHL hat-trick as the Winnipeg Jets beat the Utah Hockey Club 5-2. Nikolaj Ehlers had a goal and two assists to reach 500 points for his career, while David Gustafsson also scored for Winnipeg. Connor Hellebuyck had 17 saves. Barrett Hayton and Nick Schmaltz scored for Utah, while Connor Ingram stopped 25 shots. Perfetti gave Winnipeg a 3-2 lead when he lifted the puck over a fallen Ingram on a pass from Vladislav Namestnikov 5 minutes, 51 seconds into the third period. Ehlers stole the puck at his own blue line and raced down
RSS