Real Sporting de Gijón 

Real Sporting de Gijón 

Real Sporting de Gijón is a Spanish football club, founded in 1905 and based in Gijón (Asturias). Its stadium, El Molinón-Enrique Castro Quini, is the oldest in Spain.

FUNDACIÓN REAL SPORTING DE GIJÓN

Fundación Real Sporting de Gijon was created in 2017 to improve living conditions and opportunities for personal and professional growth, so that children and youth from around the world, develop their capabilities and their life dreams in the Principality of Asturias (Spain).

Marea Rojiblanca is the Corporate Social and Environmental Impact Program of Real Sporting de Gijón, with the participation of fans and Gijon’s population. It has the double purpose of empowering young people and improving the quality of life in Asturias. The Foundation believes in the power of sport as a tool for social and environmental change, developing its activity through 6 Impact Areas: Child Protection, Diversity and Equality, Environment, Health, Inclusion and Employment and Entrepreneurship.

PROJECTS

Fundación Real Sporting de Gijón operates the following programmes:

Genuine

With this project, the Foundation aims to enhance the quality of life of people with intellectual disabilities in Asturias. The team is made up of boys and girls from different non-profit associations in the region. It allows them to belong to the club of which they are fans, acquiring unique learning and improving their adaptation to everyday life in their educational, social, and work environment.

In addition to training, the team participates in the Pelayo Novo AsturFútbol League and the Genuine League, which consists of several annual tournaments played both in the region of Asturias and in different places around Spain. Currently, around 30 players are part of this very special team.

“Marea Rojiblanca” Inclusive Schools

To normalize football practice among people with intellectual disabilities, this project consists of creating football teams in special education schools in Asturias. It includes weekly training sessions, special events, and other activities.

Annually, the 110 players who form part of this program compete in the regional league Astur + Pelayo Novo for people with intellectual disabilities, as well as enjoying a graduation ceremony at the end of the season on the pitch of the El Molinón stadium.

Druzhkiva Team

Druzhkiva Team is an inclusive initiative that facilitates the adaptation of young Ukrainian refugees with intellectual disabilities from the city of Druzhkiva in Donetsk (Ukraine). Founded in 2022, it is inspired by our former player of Ukrainian origin, Vasyl Kravets, who facilitated the first contact and the creation of this inclusive football school.

With this activity, the players can continue with the team they enjoyed in their hometown in the Donbass region, enjoying and adapting to their new environment by playing football and competing with their own team in the Astur + Pelayo Novo regional league.

Fútbol Andarín

Their Walking Football program (Fútbol Andarín in local language) aims to promote physical activity in all ages, especially in people over 50 years old. This non-contact and non-running format of football seeks to develop active aging in Asturian society, allowing everyone to practice their favorite sport regardless of age. It is accompanied by weekly training sessions and a follow-up plan, which begins with taking measurements of the physical condition of the players.

The participants in the Real Sporting de Gijón program are, in any case, people suffering from chronic illnesses, working closely with the Cabueñes Hospital, a reference in the city, for the follow-up and monitoring of the physical and health situation of the players.

Tribuna de El Molinón

Radio program held in the Municipal Stadium El Molinón – Enrique Castro ‘Quini’ once a month, in collaboration with the cultural association Diversa Radio Activa. It includes interviews with associations and guests of relevance belonging to the club or Asturias. Also, a relevant figure in the club is interviewed in each of the programmes, with David Guerra (club president), Miguel Ángel Ramírez (coach) or José Riestra (Director of Football), among other illustrious guests.

Mental Health

Delivered in partnership with Montevil Integral Treatment Center, whose work and commitment began in 2008, Mental Health’s section is based on the prevention of depression, anxiety, and suicide.

Since 2023, the Real Sporting de Gijón Foundation has been actively collaborating by providing coaches, facilities and support to this team, as well as measuring, together with those in charge of the centre, the physical, health and psychological progress that football brings to the participants.

Coach + Healthy Habits

In partnership with the Gasol Foundation, Coach+ aims to put an end to childhood obesity through four pillars: physical activity, nutrition, sleep, and emotional well-being. Comprising workshops, healthy training sessions, and evaluation plans to monitor the impact, this project allows players of the Academy teams to improve their performance thanks to the adoption of healthy habits.

Coaches and families also play a crucial role as references, so the Gasol Foundation is in charge of providing all parties involved with educational and communicative material.

Campaigns

Periodic campaigns are organised to support the basic needs of the most disadvantaged people in Asturias and Spain. Specifically, actions for the donation of blood, food, clothes and toys are organised together with the main charities in the area, such as the Red Cross and the Asturias Food Bank.

Volunteering

Volunteering activities are one of the cornerstones of Real Sporting de Gijón’s activity as a football club. For this reason, both employees and first team players carry out activities every week in the city’s soup kitchen, helping with the organisation and cleaning of the charity in charge of the service.

Likewise, from the age of 12, the underage players integrated in the club’s youth academy carry out social activities with local organisations, in order to get to know the reality of the city and learn the values of volunteering. School support for underprivileged children, visits to nursing homes or environmental actions are some of the activities that are carried out.