„The thumb rule was that for every 10 paying children, Young Bafana would give a scholarship to a non-paying child. Having realised the positive impact these scholarships had on the children, the programme expanded rapidly.”
An idea became a project – a project became a dream.
#ChangingLives
„There were just eight children at the school where everything started. Today we have over 180 – and the cooperation with the schools still exist.“ – Bernd Steinhage
As a result of South Africa hosting the Soccer World Cup in 2010, interest for soccer increased immensely. However, the majority of children could not afford to pay fees for a private club or their transport to practices and matches. All they wanted was to play soccer in a safe and productive learning environment.
„The thumb rule was that for every 10 paying children, Young Bafana would give a scholarship to a non-paying child. Having realised the positive impact these scholarships had on the children, the programme expanded rapidly.”
„In the first year children were forced to practice barefoot. For one simple reason: they had to earn their shoes! Mutual respect and appreciation play a major role at Young Bafana. For many of the children being taught the correct values is not a given due to the daily confrontation with drugs and violence.“
“Due to the obvious deterioration of the South African education system, an additional education system was initiated in 2014. If a teacher has 50 pupils – all from the local township – crammed into a 25 sqm classroom, very little progress can be expected. Education is the key and the English language is the most important element.”
„Young Bafana could simply not operate without the support received, both from abroad and within South Africa. In addition to these financial and material donations, we rely on an internship programme to be a vital and important part of our operations.“
„The sporting success story emphasizes the quality of the internal structures as well as the passion shown by coaches and players, both on and off the field. However Young Bafana’s motto of ‘changing lives’ goes further than just soccer – it focusses on the individual development of every player and we strive to achieve this through soccer, education and social development. We want to offer them a better life without drugs and violence.“