Jon Snow Praises SOAS Footballers as Middle East Tour Kicks Off
20 August 2009
A men’s football team from the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) have received words of support and encouragement from Channel 4 newsman Jon Snow as they prepare for a 28-day football tour of Turkey, Syria and Lebanon.
The team, called SOAS Football Beyond Borders, met the broadcaster recently to tell him more about how the project will build stronger relations with their fellow students in the region.
“It was great to meet Jon Snow as he is such a highly-regarded figure who has a deep interest in this particular region,” said Jasper Kain, a third year International Relations student and captain of the football team. “He thought our project was fantastic and said it would be a positive experience for everyone involved. Having his backing has given us a huge boost.”
With the support of the SOAS Students’ Union and the British Council in Damascus, the team will play against students from seven universities across the three countries where they hope to open up dialogue and build friendships.
Jasper continued: “Football is the most popular team sport in the world – it’s frequently described as a ‘global language’. People from all over the world of differing and divergent political, religious and social groups can come together in their enjoyment of football. It’s the ideal medium to open up communications between cultures that are often stereotyped and misrepresented.”
Each match will be followed by a meal, presentation ceremony and a session for sharing dialogue about their respective countries and cultures.
The team will play eight matches in total against universities in Istanbul, Van, Diyarbakir and Adana in Turkey, and Aleppo and Damascus in Syria. In addition, the team will play a group of Iraqi refugees in Damascus which has been organised by United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).
The Football Beyond Borders team have already raised an impressive £10,000 of their £15,000 fundraising target, so will be working hard to raise the difference before their first game on 3 September.
The team are producing a film about the tournament which will be shown at a later date. Plans to organise a return trip in 2010 for the Syrian and Turkish teams are already being discussed.
To find out more about the tour or to donate money to the project visit www.soasbeyondborders.co.uk
