European Homeless Cup

Ups and Downs

When you’re traveling or working or playing on a team for a sport, you have positive moments and negative ones. You learn things as you go and you figure out what works and what doesn’t. I realize, now, that an 84 day trip is an incredibly long time. Currently, I am 36 days into it. While that is more than a month, it is still less than half-way through. I’ve had a bunch of ups and downs, and I would like to share a few. I believe it is important to reflect on both the good and the bad in an adventure like this.

Landing in Spain [POSITIVE]

Lost like a three-year-old kid in the clothing section of the department store, Chris and I stumbled around the city of Madrid after getting off a shuttle from the airport. We had no map and we were just getting used to the clunky weight of our backpacks. With no phones, we had to find some sort of Wi-Fi in order to get our bearings. Problem was, everything was closed as it was only six in the morning. Luckily, we tried a nearby hotel. Inside, the clerk helped us get access to the internet and the bartender helped me adjust my Spanish. Thankful, we felt like we should order some drinks or something. I asked for a nice beer and Chris got water. We sat down, opened up our emails, and took a sigh of relief. We had made it. We were across the ocean. I sipped the beer. It tasted like the best drink in the freaking world.

Leaving Barcelona [NEGATIVE]

This was the most hectic travel situation you could imagine and it was our own doing. Chris and I went to a concert for Knife Party, a dubstep/electronic artist, on the day of our first Ryanair flight. Two problems with this. First, our flight was at 06:30. Second, Knife Party opened at 00:00. Nevertheless, we went for it. We left the show, dripping in sweat and with our ear drums thoroughly worn, at 03:30. We booked it back to the place we were staying, grabbed our backpacks, chugged some water, and ate a quick snack. Heading to the bus stop, a thirty minute walk from our residence, Chris and I began to argue. We were low on sleep, but even so, we had problems to work out. I wasn’t giving Chris the amount of trust I should have. Instead, I was attempting to do everything myself. This was wrong and, rightfully, Chris was pissed about it. I was upset because he was belittling the importance of making it to the airport on time. We yelled like two little girls over a stolen Barbie doll and each had a little tantrum at 04:30 on the Barcelona streets. Drunk passerbys, heading home from bars, gave us awkward glances as we stormed by with our huge backpacks, nagging at each other. Yet, we made the bus to the airport. We sat there and let out a sigh of relief and apologized for our antics. We helped each other reach our water bottles (cute, huh?) and put our bags down. We shook hands. God, we were tired. But, we had issues. We agreed to do our best to solve the problems we had with each other and take a strong step forward. I’m glad that Chris has my back and is here on this trip. He is a strong asset and it would be incredibly different without him. We may have our differences, but we are both very different people. It isn’t about being similar- it is about using our unique skills to be the best combination of travelers possible.

Note:

Shoot. I’m realizing that I have a TON of positives and negatives, and while I have an urge to keep jamming them out on this page, I don’t want to clog this post with them. I have other things to say below! However, I think it would be a good idea if I started all future posts with a positive and a negative. That gives me more time to share different things going on and put them in a collected light. I’ll continue with more positives and negatives on the next post.

Europe Together: A Homeless Cup

From June 24 to June 27, thirteen countries joined together in Munich, Germany for the first continental program between partners of the Homeless World Cup organization. The event was coordinated by the host country and team, Germany. They worked to place a street soccer pitch in the center of Munich at a wonderful plaza called Odeonsplatz.

They put on a flawless event. The only problems were the usual tussles between players, coaches, and referees, and that ended up being positive, anyway. It is important for the players to accept the calls the referee makes, even if it is a poor one, and move on and continue playing with a good attitude.

Chris and I did our best to assist with the tournament in all possible ways. It was an incredible sight to see and, in my own opinion, it overshadowed the monuments and churches in its location. It was a spectacle that was more than just a view; it had a purpose, too.

That purpose was to bring the homeless to the forefront and to help eradicate invisibility by showing the value in each individual represented. The European Homeless Cup was not only a tournament of sport- it was also a privilege for the players. Only those with a solid reputation in their home countries were selected to be members of their teams. This “good reputation” comes down to many factors: sportsmanship, willingness to improve (physically and mentally), and strength of character.

Chris and I were lucky enough to stay with the Switzerland team during the time of the tournament. This was especially nice because we had previously worked with the Swiss program and we were familiar with the players. It was immersive, too. The first day we woke up with the team and traveled to the pitch from the hostel. I felt a little bit like an adoring fan, as I was wearing my Surprise Strassensport shirt with the Swiss logo ironed onto the front of it. I was proud to wear it, though, as I have a huge amount of respect for the Switzerland program, its players, and most of all, their coordinators and coach.

The tournament lasted two days, each day full of competition (09:00 – 19:00). There were no lulls in the program- as soon as a match was over; another match was started within two minutes time. As an outsider working with the program I strived to network and spread the word about the Homeless World Cup. Many people came by to watch- after all, it was in the middle of a very popular plaza- and I attempted to bring them up to speed on the rules of street soccer as well as the mindset and attitude of the Homeless World Cup as a nonprofit organization. Everyone was very polite, but I think this was because they were genuinely interested. They took time out of their day to stop walking and watch from the sidelines of the pitch. They seemed more than interested to learn about the program, the players, and what the Homeless World Cup was all about. I was able to talk with travelers from abroad visiting friends, business men staying in Munich for conferences, and curious locals wandering about their own city. Some of the observers even stopped to watch at the start of the day, and I didn’t see  them leave until the event was over. The pitch had that kind of magnetic pull to it.

I believe it is very important to recognize the strength of visibility in light of the problems affecting the homeless. It is especially critical to highlight the fact that they aren’t worthless. They aren’t bums. They are people, too. They are people with value and skill and the willingness to change for the better. The Homeless World Cup is all about this and it sends a powerful message. Soccer, or futbol here in Europe, is highly active. The rules are easy to pick up on and the fast-paced aspect that the street environment brings really snags a crowd’s attention. In a way, it is flashy. But, its ability to draw attention and genuine curiosity from a crowd is unmatched in my eyes.

After working with the European Homeless Cup I am a definite advocate for the program. I think that in a few years the Homeless World Cup will be very well known. It is a powerful program that, while it began many years ago, is starting to reach a turning point. It is growing larger and larger with more countries and more partners. These partners and countries are becoming more like individuals, each more organized as time goes on. Now, they can put together greater local tournaments. These local or regional or continental events garner even more attention from the public. If the Homeless World Cup becomes a household name, these events will be immensely popular. Currently, though, the organization is in the process of becoming that big name. And it’s getting there quickly.

I have so much to say on this, but I don’t want to leave out other aspects of my trip. This blog, I’m finding, only reaches the surface. It is especially important that I track my thoughts and feelings because after this trip I will be writing an evaluation and study of the Homeless World Cup as an overall program and nonprofit. I want to analyze how effective it is from an outside point of view. The good. The bad. Where to improve. All of it. At the moment, I am unbelievably positive and excited for this project. It has a meaning and a purpose and it is right in the center of what I am interested in.

About to leave Igls, Austria now! Talk to you later!

Ciao,

Sam