Despite lack of financial support, football championship organized for Afrin’s IDPs

The Sports Union of the Youth and Sports Authority in Afrin region (an administrative division of the Autonomous Administration) organized a tournament for the classification of football teams for Afrin IDPs in the northern countryside of Aleppo.

The tournament, which took place on the pitch of “Sardam” camp involved 20 football teams.

Mustafa Ismail, an administrative member in the Union, told North-Press that the mechanism by which teams will be classified will include participating of each team in 11 matches, followed by comparing the scores of the teams, while the teams that ranked in first eight places, will be classified in the first division .

He also pointed out that the aim of the tournament is to “organize football sport in the northern countryside of Aleppo”.

While organizing process has faced difficulties during the preparation stage of the tournament, of which the most prominent obstacles were, “the lack of sufficient financial support”, indicating that the tournament cost them “about 600 thousands Syrian pounds, equivalent to $950”.

He added that the players are responsible for securing teams’ uniforms and jerseys, in addition to the pitch of the red soil, which would make be a problem for the Sports Union to organize football tournaments during the winter.

Ismail explained that the teams participating in the tournament cannot participate in tournaments of other areas in north and eastern Syria, because of “the imposed siege on Afrin’s IDPs in the northern countryside of Aleppo”.

Meanwhile, Damhat Abdo, al-Ahdath village team member, told North-Press that he was a player in Rajo team before being displaced, as there’re dozens of similar cases from Afrin, “Now I can continue to play and pursue my hobby, while I spend my free time by training and taking care of my fitness”, Damhat said.

“Football is a breathing space for me”, said Abdo Seydo, a player in Sardam camp tournament, “I was unemployed and was working in sewing in Afrin before being displaced, but there are no workshops here, playing football makes me feel better”, he said.

The Union administration explained that it is preparing for holding other sporting events in the upcoming days, such as women’s volleyball tournament.

It is noteworthy that thousands of Afrin’s IDPs reside in the northern countryside of Aleppo, who were displaced from their hometown after the Turkish invasion against the Syrian-Kurdish region of Afrin, last year.