FCBARCELONA.CAT

31.01.2007 07:01

Dreams come true

Dreams and hope were the words most heard among the group of 16 Ugandan boys that visited the FC Barcelona facilities on a Wednesday full of excitement

As part of the alliance between Unicef and the Fundació del FC Barcelona, the club offered the young Ugandans the chance to get to know the club facilities. The Ugandan team is called The Kids League and is made up of 16 children aged between 12 and 14 years from all over the country, but mainly the north, where thousands of people live in refugee camps as a result of the conflict the country has been suffering for more than 20 years.

A busy schedule

After landing in Barcelona on Tuesday evening, the 16 boys had a packed programme ahead of them. Early in the morning, the young Ugandans had a short training session on the Miniestadi turf, and immediately after that they all attended FC Barcelona and Unicef’s official presentation of their visit.

At midday, they had lunch at La Masia with the boarders who play for the Barça youth teams. This provided an excellent opportunity for both the children at La Masia and those from Uganda to exchange experiences. It offered a wonderful chance for the Barça youngsters to learn about other cultures, as many of these young African boys have experienced first hand what war can be like.

After eating, the children enjoyed one of the big moments of the day, a friendly match against the Barça ‘cadet’ team. And after that they were able to watch the first team playing in the Cup match against Zaragoza at the Camp Nou.

The sense of ‘More than a club'

FC Barcelona vice-president, Alfons Godall, expressed his satisfaction with this new initiative designed in association with Unicef. "This visit fills us with pride and is a huge honour for us. Alliances like this are what the slogan More than a Club is all about", he told a press conference.

Meanwhile, Amalia Navarro, Unicef’s director of image and awareness, expressed her gratitude to FC Barcelona for making the visit possible and bringing so much hope to the 16 Ugandan boys. "The children asked Unicef for the chance to find out about FC Barcelona, and it has been thanks to the club’s generosity that it has all been made possible". Unicef claim that their alliance with Barça has produced some very positive results and, as Amalia Navarro said, “has made many dreams and many changes possible".

Trevor Dudley, the team’s coordinator, also expressed his satisfaction with the children’s visit to FC Barcelona. He believes football is the healthiest way of overcoming conflicts. "It is a great way of dealing with problems” he said. “Of making life healthier. Because football is like a magnet for achieving that kind of thing."