Football United – World Cup Champions

While the recent FIFA World Cup brought together the greatest football teams on the planet, the Football for Hope Festival assembled 32 teams that represented the power of the game for social change. UNSW Medicine’s Football United was one of these teams and made it through to the quarter finals.

In recognition of the innovative soccer development program initiated by Football United, the team was selected to compete in the Football for Hope Festival.

In a specially constructed stadium in the heart of Alexandra, Johannesburg, mixed teams of boys and girls aged 15 to 18 competed in a fast paced tournament to be crowned Football for Hope World Champions on 10 July 2010.

There were no referees and any disagreements between the teams were resolved through dialogue, and for the first time ever a celebration of the social dimension of the game was an official event of the FIFA World Cup.

The Football for Hope Festival was much more than just a football tournament. Each delegation was selected not for their skill on the pitch but their contribution to social change in disadvantaged communities around the world.

"The Football for Hope Festival was a unique opportunity for organisations using football as a tool for social development in every part of the world to interact with each other and to showcase their programmes on football's biggest stage - the 2010 FIFA World Cup," said FIFA President Joseph S. Blatter.

Football United was founded by UNSW Medicine’s School of Public Health and Community Medicine (SPHCM) convener of Health Promotion, Anne Bunde-Birouste, in 2006 at as the basis for her PhD thesis. Anne’s vision was to explore the feasibility of assisting recently arrived humanitarian refugee youth and families in their transition into Australian society, using people’s love for Football (soccer) to offer opportunities for belonging, racial harmony and community cohesion.

In addition to Anne’s thesis work, a team of SPHCM researchers was awarded an Australian Research Council Linkage grant in 2008. Further industry grants and a hard working and enthusiastic team have combined to enable the program to flourish, with significant impact both within the communities, nationally and internationally, and particularly in its capacity to promote UNSW.

UNSW students have contributed greatly to the development and running of the program to date. MPH students volunteer in all aspects of the program, and Medical students have provided vital development assistance and learning during their ILP (Independent Learning Project) years.

Other support has come from the NSW Premier Kristina Keneally whose one-off grant of $20,000 helped the team get to the World Cup.

Football United Team

Opening Ceremony

From Left: Prof Raina MacIntyre, Hon. Kristina Keneally MP, Prof Peter Smith and Ms Anne Bunde-Birouste