Learning Beyond the Classroom, Through Sport

While formal education plays a crucial role, many vulnerable children and youth remain excluded from traditional classroom environments. For refugees, displaced persons, and marginalized communities, sport offers an alternative pathway to healing, learning, and personal development.

The Education Through Sport (ETS) program at EFA Foundation utilizes structured football training and sport-based activities to:

• Foster social inclusion and intercultural understanding

• Build emotional resilience, coping mechanisms, and psychosocial well-being

• Develop leadership, teamwork, discipline, and decision-making skills

• Provide safe, supportive environments for personal growth

• Promote healthy lifestyles and positive behavioral change

For refugee children who have experienced trauma, instability, and prolonged uncertainty, football becomes:

• A safe space for self-expression

• A platform to rebuild confidence and a sense of belonging

• A pathway to restore hope and joy in childhood

In addition to regular coaching sessions, ETS organizes community tournaments, life-skills workshops, and inclusive events that foster interaction across diverse cultural, religious, and social backgrounds.

The ETS program directly contributes to several global development goals:

• SDG 3: Good Health and Wellbeing

• SDG 4: Quality Education

• SDG 10: Reduced Inequalities

• SDG 16: Peace, Justice, and Strong Institutions

By integrating education and sport, ETS empowers vulnerable youth to build resilience, acquire lifelong skills, and envision positive futures.