Football For All program  

Originally established in Wellington through Wellington Phoenix FC and Capital Football, the program primarily supports whānau of refugee and immigrant backgrounds that have newly arrived in New Zealand. Football For All expanded into Christchurch in 2023 with support and funding made available for 20 families and has continued to grow. 12 months later Football For All now provides support for over 100 families across the Mainland Football region, many of whom have been relocated to New Zealand in the past 6 months. 

One of those families includes Mohammed Mumin who moved to New Zealand in May 2021 with his mother and siblings. Originally from Somalia, Mohammed now lives in Christchurch and absolutely loves football. Through Football For All, he is playing for his local club, Ferrymead Bays FC, and getting the opportunity to build connections and a sense of belonging within his local community. 

Having lived in Saudi Arabia and Malaysia prior to his journey to New Zealand, Mohammed reflects on his time here in New Zealand; “Just in two years of living here I can say New Zealand is a great place, the people, weather, the school, and my football club. Living in New Zealand is a dream for me”. 

“Football this season is going very well, me and my team are always trying to get the three points. Football is a big part of my life”. 

Mainland Football partners with Pōwhiri, a refugee resettlement support service here in Christchurch provided by Purapura Whetu Trust. The partnership has allowed local refugee support workers and Mainland Football staff to connect, working together to identify the needs of families and provide tailored support to ensure all barriers are removed when it comes to accessing football. 

Abdul Hussein from Purapura Whetu Trust described the impact that the program is currently having.

“The Football For All program has been a huge success with our former refugee whaiora. We have never seen such a high level of engagement across all age groups and genders. Sport has always been a unifier of people and communities so we welcome the collaboration with  Mainland Football.”

Football For All participants are provided individual support to connect them to local football clubs and from there they can receive funding to cover all football club registration fees, as well as receive new boots (provided by New Balance), grip socks, water bottles and gear bags courtesy of Wellington Pheonix FC. 

Hemi Innes, Mainland Football Coordinator for Football For All, plays a central role in connecting families with football clubs and making sure they feel supported throughout our region. With over 100 families now included in the program, Hemi feels the support of caseworkers, local clubs, and their volunteers has been an integral part of the success of the program so far.

“The program this year has been incredibly humbling to be a part of. What I have learnt is our refugee and migrant whānau have changing circumstances with many aspects of their lives, with football it creates some permanence for them to feel integrated within our community. A big credit goes out to our Mainland Football community across the region who have made our Football For All family feel a sense of belonging here in Aotearoa allowing them to settle into a sport they love and a place they now call home.”

Mainland Football is proud to have such an inclusive and welcoming football whānau across our region and our hope is to be able to continue to grow Football For All in the coming years. This is only possible thanks to volunteers and members in our local clubs, who do such a fantastic job in making people feel welcome and supported when first joining a football club. Acknowledgement also goes to Sport Canterbury who have come on board in 2024 as a supporting partner in the program - we look forward to developing this and other partnerships as the program expands.