From Latin America to Middle East: How a sport-based methodology created in Chile adapted to Syrian displacement camps

Summary video for the "Sport for child protection and emergency response in northwest Syria" project by Futbol Mas | Watch on YouTube

In February 2023, an earthquake struck northern Syria, displacing thousands of families who were forced to seek refuge in internally displaced persons (IDP) camps. This situation created numerous challenges, severely affecting the well-being of the communities, particularly children, many of whom were out of school for extended periods and experiencing psychological distress. Violence and harmful practices against children were also identified, highlighting the urgent need for child protection and psychosocial support. Factors such as poverty, lack of awareness, and restrictive gender norms created barriers to girls' education and participation in sports, necessitating special efforts to address these gender-specific challenges.

Futbol Más is an NGO founded in Chile in 2008, which developed a methodology aimed at promoting socio-emotional development through play and sport. Since its inception, the methodology has been adapted to different countries and contexts, including work with forcibly displaced children and youth. Through play and sport, Futbol Más’ programmes aim to create safe spaces that foster children's well-being and restore their right to play.

When contact was made between Futbol Más, UNICEF MENA (Middle East and North Africa), and Mercy Without Limits (MWL), a humanitarian organisation working in IDP camps in Syria, a new challenge emerged: How could we adapt the social-sport methodology to the Syrian displacement camps?

A new project was launched: “Sport for Child Protection and Emergency Response in Northwest Syria”, with the aim of promoting children's rights and well-being in Syrian camps through sport and play. To achieve this, a robust capacity-building programme was designed for Futbol Más to train a group of Syrian humanitarian professionals working in the camps, enabling them to implement the sport-based methodology with displaced children and youth.

The capacity-building programme employed a variety of training methodologies, including on-site training, online events, a digital learning platform, and an interactive learning community for professionals to exchange best practices and address challenges.

The training content was developed based on a needs assessment, which helped define the most relevant topics for working with the target population. As a result, the curriculum incorporated socio-emotional units for the psychosocial support of children, such as trust and positive bonds, assertive conflict resolution, and the recognition and expression of emotions, among others. Additionally, technical and sports units were included, which together provided the foundation for planning activities with children and adolescents based on three cross-cutting approaches: children's rights, inclusion and non-discrimination, and gender equality.

The project was implemented in three phases. In November 2023, Futbol Más professionals conducted on-site training in Turkey, where 14 MWL professionals were trained and evaluated through both a theoretical knowledge test and a practical assessment in the field. In December 2023, the MWL professionals trained by Futbol Más conducted a second phase of theoretical and practical training for 31 professionals from the same organisation in Syria. Finally, between December 2023 and January 2024, the trained professionals in Syria, using the Futbol Más methodology, implemented the social-sport programme for 2,007 children and young people in the IDP camps in northern Syria. Of these participants, 1,011 were boys and 996 were girls.

According to the results, 83% of the trained professionals passed the theoretical test, and 100% passed the practical test, reflecting the success of the training process. However, the most significant impact was seen in the communities of children and young people in the IDP camps located in Afrin and the Dana areas of the Syrian provinces of Aleppo and Idlib. The training created opportunities to establish safe spaces for children to exercise their right to play and engage in recreation in public spaces, while also fostering a protective community to support these activities. These are essential elements in psychosocial recovery during humanitarian crises.

A specific challenge of the project was promoting the participation of girls and young women, who faced greater inequality in exercising their rights and occupying public spaces. Through the training of MWL professionals, it became possible to create safe environments for both girls and boys, achieving equal participation from both genders in the programme.

Another key aspect of the project was the importance of international partnerships and the potential of collaboration between organisations from vastly different regions and contexts. In this case, an organisation founded in Latin America was able to share its knowledge and experience with an organisation from the Middle East, allowing them to adapt and apply the methodology in their own context. One of the initial challenges was the language barrier, but a key lesson learned from the project was that the shared vision between the two organisations, alongside the universal appeal of football and play, was able to overcome language and cultural differences. These factors did not present an obstacle to the successful development of the project. Ultimately, the success of the initiative was made possible by the strong commitment of all the professionals involved to the well-being of children, which became the common core that united the three organisations driving the project: UNICEF, Mercy Without Limits, and Futbol Más.

About the authors

Katherine Hormazábal: International Methodology Coordinator at Fútbol Más. Social Worker, Universidad Alberto Hurtado, Santiago de Chile. Master's Degree in Legal and Social Protection of Vulnerable Persons and Groups from the University of Cadiz, Spain.  

Perrine Mardiné: Director of the Innovation Lab at Fútbol Más. Master's degree in Social Economy from ESSCA Business School and Université Catholique de l’Ouest, France.

Sebastián Pellicer: Information management coordinator at Fútbol Más, Sociologist, Universidad Católica de Santiago de Chile.