Every year FIFA tests hundreds of footballs as part of the FIFA Quality Programme for Footballs to ensure that each football meets the quality standards stipulated in the Laws of the Game.
Rather than simply store the tested balls, FIFA has identified opportunities led by some of its employees and internal stakeholders to distribute these samples to projects that can benefit from them.
In this post, discover two examples of how these samples have been put to good use in Eritrea and South Africa.
Kids at the Cicero Stadium, Asmara, Eritrea The Cicero Stadium in Asmara is located next to the headquarters of the Eritrean Football Federation (EFF) as well as a large open market for the local community. After school has ended, and the young children of the market vendors play in the shadows of the Cicero Stadium. Their favourite game is football but they do not always have a football. Sometimes they come to ask for footballs from the EFF staff when they see the national teams training at the headquarters. FIFA gave 3 sample footballs to the kids to play with while parents are working at the market. They are now having have fun as they copy their stars at local clubs such as Red Sea FC and Al-Tahrir that play at Cicero Stadium.
CSR initiative for the NMU/FIFA/CIES Executive Programme in Sport Management in Port Elizabeth, South Africa Now on the verge of starting its 13th edition in September 2019, the NMU/FIFA/CIES Executive Programme attracts sport administrators from all over Africa. For most of the students, it is their first time in Port Elizabeth and they are usually impressed by the “Friendly City” of South Africa. Since 2016, the NMU/FIFA/CIES students have organized a class auction to raise funds and “give back” to Port Elizabeth by purchasing football equipment to donate to one or more local schools/clubs. Among the auctions items are adidas football test samples signed by Zvonimir Boban (former FIFA Deputy Secretary General Football) and Marco van Basten (former FIFA Technical Development Chief Officer). A special piece of memorabilia for the students and a positive benefit for local schools. Each NMU/FIFA/CIES edition usually raises enough funds to buy at least two football kits for a local school – and the tradition will continue in 2019!