Real Madrid Foundation Travels to Cambodia to Train NGO Football Coaches

PHNOM PENH – Representatives of the Real Madrid Foundation have travelled to Cambodia to train the football coaches of two local NGOs, as part of an international cooperation program to support sports education for social purposes, the foundation reported Monday.

Real Madrid trainers will meet in Battambang, northwestern Cambodia, until Friday to review collaboration with its partner organization Sauce, which is linked to the diocese in the province.

The program, which has around 166 students – nearly one-third of whom are disabled because of landmines and polio, was launched with the Real Madrid Foundation last year.

The non-profit Sauce is led by Spanish priest Enrique Figaredo and finances a number of social activities in Battambang province.

Real Madrid trainers also paid a visit to the offices of the Spanish NGO “Por la Sonrisa de un Niño” (PSN) in Phnom Penh last week, and signed an agreement with the PSN headquarters in Madrid on Wednesday to work together.

“They came to find us because they heard about our sports methodology, they heard about how we educate children using sports as a tool to teach values, which is missing in their education,” director of international area of the club, Rosa Roncal, told Efe.

The work of the Real Madrid Foundation includes training and advising coaches, providing an education delivery kit and helping NGOs to raise funds, though the latter is ultimately the responsibility of the local organization.

“The Real Madrid Foundation does not directly fund the projects. The support of local authorities is important to keep the projects going forever,” Roncal said.

In order to monitor the projects and the children’s progress, the schools sign a four-year contract with the local partner agreeing to undergo external audits, report three times per year on the project and provide updates on the sports program and its participating students.

“The sports-partner schools of Real Madrid never look for the talented. It is mandatory that the teams are mixed... Our children cannot be in any official competition,” said the Foundation’s international director.

Nearly one hundred children plan to enroll in the PSN program, which was founded in 1995 to help children survive by collecting garbage in Phnom Penh.

The program now supports thousands of families by offering vocational trainings to children until they find their first job.

“I feel like I dreamed about the Spanish Real Madrid team for a long time, and now I see that the Real Madrid foundation is coming for the PSN training and we are all very happy with the program,” said Sydachan So, a trainer who participated in the training practice.

The Real Madrid Foundation, which works with over 264 schools in 71 countries, is currently assessing a third agreement that may be signed with another Cambodian school in the upcoming months.

source: http://www.laht.com/article.asp?ArticleId=2404660&CategoryId=13002