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Play31 utilizes the unifying power of football to bring together people who have been torn apart by armed conflict. By facilitating community gatherings and donating footballs, we contribute to the creation of peaceful societies where children can exercise their right to play. Play31’s vision is a world where all children are free to play, as stipulated in Article 31 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.
For us, football is the greatest game in the world: we believe it has the potential to bring people together, to spread joy, and to facilitate healing in post-conflict societies – we call it ‘football for reconciliation’. In countries affected by war and conflict, we have seen how organizing community
tournaments and thus bringing people together can be an important part of the reconciliation process. It is
about translating peace on the pitch to peace off the pitch.
Play31 partners with existing peace-building initiatives. Understanding reconciliation cannot happen
overnight, we believe that, by teaching children to work together and by fostering a sense of community
among players and spectators alike, football can have an important place in local peace-building efforts.
Play31 works in Sierra Leone, which endured a civil war that left thousands dead and millions displaced. The
war ended in 2002, but the healing continues. To bring “football for reconciliation” to Sierra Leone, Play31
has partnered with a local human rights organization, Forum of Conscience. They implement community-
based reconciliation projects, bringing people together to foster healing by creating safe spaces for dialogue
and interaction and we build on their network and infrastructure in organizing our tournaments. In July 2009
we extended our work across the borders with Guinea and Sierra Liberia and organized a Tri-Nation
Tournament with communities from all three countries. It is the goal of Play31 to spread even further and
reach other nations grabbling with the aftermath of war.
Partnering with Forum of Conscience, a concept has been designed to unite former combatants, victims and
witnesses of the war on the pitch as well as in gatherings off the pitch with communal dinners and
celebrations to promote healing and dialogue. Since its inception, Play31 has donated hundreds of footballs
and organized tournaments that have brought together participants from over a hundred villages. In total,
several thousand people have participated in our community gatherings.
In evaluating our work, we found that female matches - a first for these communities - were especially
powerful for the communities. Furthermore, almost all interviewees responded that they met old friends and
made new ones at the events and an overwhelming majority responded that they felt the relationships with
neighboring communities, which were often strained during the war, had improved as a consequence of the
communities getting together on and off the football fields in the Play31 Tournament.
The board of Play31 has members with experience in business, media, and conflict resolution. Board
members are based in New York City, Los Angeles and Copenhagen, Denmark. If you would like to know
more about Play31, please contact Executive Director Jakob Lund at play31@play31.org.
