First in-person meeting of the SAFER project

First in-person meeting of the SAFER project

The first in-person meeting with Football Supporters Europe (FSE) and project partners took place in Gdańsk, Poland, in order to discuss the future collaboration with the SAFER project, co-funded by Erasmus+.

On Saturday, 15th of April, FSE and project partners went to Gdansk for the kick-off meeting of the SAFER project, hosted by the University of Gdańsk. On behalf of EFDN, project manager Vicky Conde Sancho joined the seminar. SAFER, the short abbreviation of “Support & Awareness for Female fans in European football through Research, prevention, and remedy”, is a new Erasmus+ funded three-year multi-partner project led by Football Supporters Europe (FSE). 

“Bringing the partners together for the first time and the discussions that took place leaves no questions about the significance and necessity to achieve the aims and objectives SAFER is working towards. The partners come from a broad range of society who all have a stake in tackling gender-based violence in football. It was very encouraging to see the discussions in the room at such an early stage in the project.”

Mattia Angelini, FSE’s EU Projects Specialist

Whilst in Gdańsk, the SAFER project’s dedicated website (saferproject.eu) was launched, which will be at the centre of disseminating the project’s progress and outcomes. A SAFER newsletter is live on the website and can be subscribed to by signing up at the bottom of the homepage.

“I am delighted that the University of Gdańsk is one of the partners in the SAFER project and that we hosted the first in-person meeting. Our university takes the social responsibility of research very seriously and is keen to be involved in projects that combine research with social engagement. The SAFER project is an excellent example that science and social action can go hand in hand. We spent two intensive, productive days in Gdańsk, and I’m sure that every future project meeting will be the same.”

Radoslaw Kassowski, Associate Professor in Sociology at the University of Gdańsk

Following the meeting, the next steps will see the project partners collaboratively decide on the pilot sites that will be the focus of research and remedy and prevention implementation. The next in-person meeting will see EFDN host the project partners in Breda, Netherlands in early 2024.

More about the Safer project

The SAFER project is focused on tackling gender-based violence and discrimination in the game by establishing prevention and remedy mechanisms for football fans and other match attendees. The SAFER project will attract supporters and a cross-section of experts and football stakeholders to work together and apply their work to the organisations.

Consultation with affected groups, survivors and affected persons of gender-based violence, match organisers, and experts in prevention and remedy mechanisms will enable the project’s unique consortium to collate innovative and evidence-based responses to gender-based violence in and around stadia before outlining a plan to move towards prevention.

The SAFER project will achieve its aims through: 

• research into the extent of gender-based violence within football stadia and match-related activities; 
• identification and promotion of good practice and development of recommendations in the prevention of gender-based violence;  
• and production of a remedy policy and associated guidelines to support the survivors of gender-based violence.   

Previous and future events

In February 2023, FSE and the SAFER project partners met online for the first time setting out the final preparations before the project is announced. One month later, the Football Supporters Europe (FSE) announced the SAFER project, showcasing its objectives and the partners taking part in the project.

Between the period of June and November, FSE & EFDN will meet with the pilot sites (stadiums) online, which will be followed by on-site visits to identify what methods work best to tackle GBV.

EFDN will host the second partner meeting in February 2024 in the Netherlands on the implementation of remedy and awareness strategies at club level, followed by a training in Germany, related to the preparation of UEFA EURO 2024 between March and June. Last but not least, Portugal will host the third partner meeting on safety & security, including the presentation of the project’s progress report in September 2024. The evaluation of implemented activities during UEFA EURO 2024 begins in Germany.

Evaluations of the SAFER project

The first evaluation of implemented activities will take place in November, 2024 during UEFA EURO in Germany. Afterwards, the final evaluation visits will take place at the pilot sites between March and June 2025, assessing the impact of the implemented activities to prevent GBV. FSE will host the final evaluation meeting and launch its handbook at the European Parliament, presenting the project’s outcomes. At the end, FSE will host the final evaluation meeting and launch its handbook at the European Parliament, presenting the project’s outcomes in November, 2025.

The project is supported by UEFA, the Sport & Rights Alliance, and the Centre for Sport & Human Rights. The SAFER project is co-funded by the Erasmus+ Programme of the European Union.