Building a bond of trust with girls through sports
When it comes to sports, be it futsal or otherwise, the participation of girls isn’t always self-evident. A myriad of reasons can constitute a barrier for girls to partake. Team Sportservice Amsterdam (TSA) does everything in its power to bring girls together for a futsal competition, even if that means going out and recruiting girls on the street. Funded by the Nike Community Impact Fund, TSA strives to provide a safe and inclusive space for these girls, taking away all boundaries that otherwise would hold them back.
Image by Meryem Slimani for Lilith x Nike
With the noise of kids playing sports in the background, Denise Landsbergen tells us all about how the futsal competition for girls came into being. “Well, it was fairly organic,” she says. Denise, and her colleagues Remco van Twiller and Jannis Jansen, were already interested in soccer and futsal. When the European Futsal Championship was hosted in the Netherlands in 2022, the city of Amsterdam found Team Sportservice Amsterdam in their search for partner organizations. Their goal was not only to promote the championship, but also to introduce people to futsal – especially young girls. “From there, it all went rather quickly. We thought of a competition, so we approached various soccer and futsal clubs to help make it happen. The new girls’ competition was born right then and there,” Denise remembers. Team Sportservice Amsterdam has been bringing people from the city together through sports for quite some time now. A couple of years ago, the opportunity to organise a girls’ futsal competition arose.
Organizing the futsal competition connects nicely to the other activities of Team Sportservice Amsterdam, which is the local branch of a nationwide non-profit organization that aims to bring the positive effects of sports to everyone in the Netherlands. No matter age or background, they believe sports are good for your mental as well as physical health, provide a social network and are simply fun. Team Sportservice organizes various projects around sports and movement, such as sport lessons in high schools. The organization emphasizes the importance of sports, especially the social aspect. “Sports can help take people out of their isolation,” says Denise. Here is where the sense of community comes in: exercising together, meeting new people, while doing something you like and is good for you.
“In order to create a safe space, it is vital to build a bond of trust with the girls”
So, what was the goal of the new girls’ futsal competition? “To have a big Amsterdam-based competition that is accessible for all girls”, says Denise. Currently, there are four teams active in the competition, but they have big ambitions for its future. Thanks to their previous experience organizing sports events, they know how to reach their target audience. The girls that join have heard of the competition at school or their soccer club, but Team Sportservice Amsterdam also recruits on the streets:
“We simply approach girls at neighborhood hang-outs and tell them that we are organizing a futsal competition, and ask if they want to join. We have learned that establishing personal contact with them really works.”
When asked why they applied for the Nike Community Impact Fund, Denise’s answer was very clear: “For the girls”. It is beyond dispute: the competition means a lot to them: “Some girls have never done sports before, it’s literally the first time they are exercising.” But it also has a very social component to it. Denise has seen friendships grow between the teams’ players. The fund contributes to setting up a big community of young girls. Nike is not only financially supporting the project, but they also provide a contact person, who is invited to the competition and will brainstorm with the team about how Nike can further support the initiative, or how they can help promote the events.
“The money is a nice bonus, because it facilitates our wishes, but we also learn a lot about marketing and communication and we get insights into the needs of the target group, and how to respond to it.”
With the Nike Community Impact Fund, the team is able to make sure that all of the girls get the same supplies, for example bags, balls, and shoes. This way, everyone is treated equally: girls from higher income families as well as girls from lower income families, because they don’t have to buy the gear themselves. Additionally, the support of Nike guarantees that the competition can be organized for a longer time, to make sure the community lasts. Another important factor for the organizers of the competition is the notion of creating a safe and inclusive space. Denise gives an example of how they have done that:
“We saw that girls who were wearing headscarves were often struggling while playing futsal. It often gets in the way when moving, or it starts to get loose. When you do sports, you should be able to move freely. We asked these girls what their needs were, and we found out that a sports head scarf would be a good solution. We were able to facilitate this equipment for them, thus leveling the playing field and making sure everyone could move around equally.”
In order to create such a safe space, it is vital to build a bond of trust with the girls, Denise says. It is important to know what moves them, and what they need to make the most out of it, so that you can implement a framework that facilitates that. A tip for other impact makers? “You need to really invest in them and start a real conversation.”
The Nike Community Impact Fund (NCIF) benefits communities where employees live, work and play. These employee-led grants support local, grassroots organizations that get kids moving, because Nike knows that active kids do better. And when kids have an opportunity to fall in love with play and sport, they’re more likely to reach their full potential both on and off the court. Submissions will be accepted from January 10 through early March 2023 in Europe. Check it out here.
*There are several other organizations that emphasize the importance of a sense of community and safe space for girls to participate in sports, that receive funding from Nike.
War Child Holland offers sports, games, and movement-based activities for refugee children from 6 to 18 years old, all over the country. With their TeamUp project, they teach these children with skills that are also useful in their day-to-day life. Each of their activities is aimed at dealing with a specific emotion or improving interaction with others.
Stichting NL Cares organizes De Spelen (The Games) in which primary schools are connected to sports. During De Spelen volunteers guide the children and encourage them to register with local sports clubs. Their goals are to build a strong community and a connection with sports that last on a structural level, even after the event.
Stichting Het Vergeten Kind organizes events for disadvantaged children. They are working on building a hotel where they can offer these children a short holiday, including lots of sports and leisure. *
This article arose from the collaboration between Lilith Magazine x Nike Community Impact Fund to raise awareness around the fund amongst grassroots organizations.