Empowerment and the Soccer Field

Safia, Soccer Coach, Egypt: Playing sports gives a girl the feeling of empowerment on how to make decisions, how to take decisions, and how to become a better, stronger character. Sports are very, very, very important to females because they give them a voice, especially in cultures where they’re male dominated. Because, if a women is… has a little bit more of know-how on something, then she will be a bit more respected with men. And that I see that in our culture especially because I’m a female coach in women’s soccer, or, men’s soccer too. When I start talking with a male coach, they first disregard me, but when I start showing them how much I understand or know about the game, they eventually start… taking me in a bit and respecting me, and then, at the very end, they accept me as a coach. I’m here on uh, on an exchange program that, where we exchange cultures through women’s soccer.