Integration in Germany through football – DW – 05.11.2024

With just a few hand gestures, Salim Mehdaoui indicates what he wants from the children gathered in the gymnasium of a primary school in Bonn. They gather in the middle of the room and form a circle. Some shift their weight nervously as they stare wide-eyed at the trainer and wait their turn.

Salim holds a soccer ball under his arm and, after saying each child’s name, begins training. “The kids are getting used to our rituals. Like collective greetings and goodbyes,” the coach told DW. In addition to sport, it is also about the social union of the participants, emphasized Salim.

The social environment in the club is important as the participants come from a nearby refugee initial reception facility.

“This kind of training is important for children because while they ran away, many had the experience of the strongest coming out on top. Often their behavior can be a bit brutal,” Antje Nekhili told DW.

“Here they are taught to be careful again. Children can have good social and playful relationships again.”

Nekhili is the volunteer coordinator of the refugee home and launched the “Football Connects” project with Hertha Bonn in March 2022.

The language barrier is proving a challenge

Finally the ball gets rolling and things get loud in the small gym. Bursts of laughter mingle with goal celebrations – the delight is as visible as it is contagious.

“It fills me with joy,” Mehdaoui said. “You see it’s doing good for the kids, which really motivates me.”

When the project was launched two years ago, the now-student had just finished a gap year doing voluntary social work at Hertha Bonn. Salim developed a set of guidelines because communication particularly challenged him and his colleagues.

“Of course it’s a challenge because there are language barriers and there are new kids at every training session,” Hertha Bonn vice president Jörg Michael told DW. “The children come from different countries and often do not speak a common language.”

According to Michael, this makes it difficult for coaches to reach all the kids.

Mehdaoui tackled the problem head-on and developed solutions together with the responsible parties at the club. Communication – when not in English or French – is practiced non-verbally with flashcards that Mehdaoui shows the children.

That means a common language isn’t always necessary, Nekhili said. “That way we can make friends from what in other contexts might be antagonistic cultures because they play on the same team.”

The club uses football as a common language, which Michael says is understood worldwide.

DFB: “An impressive example of selflessness”

“Five minute break” or a simple stop sign on a card is displayed so that the children understand what is happening. And it works – the project is a huge success and was recently awarded an award for integration and tolerance in football by the German Football Association (DFB).

Under the leadership of DFB president Bernd Neuendorf, Hertha Bonn was selected from 134 candidates for the award. The association called it “an impressive example of selflessness, because it is not a way to win future members of the club”. The children leave the Bonn refugee center within days or weeks.

Clubs can help with integration

Despite the usually short stays, the children benefit from the weekly training sessions. In addition to being a distraction from their daily lives in refugee housing, they learn important social skills and are exposed to German culture.

“Training sessions change the way children behave. If they have already been to one, then they can help other children,” said Nekhili. “They support each other and share their knowledge.”

For Jörg Michael, the project demonstrates how important institutions like football clubs can be for integration. “It should be the duty of clubs to be socially involved,” he said. “That’s why we’ve developed the guidelines and we want to show how simple it can be to offer these courses.”

After only 60 minutes, today’s session ends and the children spin again and use their last remaining energy to shout “Fußball” – all in one language and all with a beaming smile.

This article was translated from German