“Respect, justice and joy for all”
In connection with World Pride 2021, a seminar was held on the theme “for everyone’s equal value”. Malmö FF and IFK Gothenburg hosted the seminar and among the speakers were SEF’s Beatrice Clarke, Malmö’s Karin Heri and Gothenburg’s Elisabeth Anderton. The values of Svensk Elite Football state: ” For us, football is about respect, justice and joy for all – and we act to show it .”
‘When it is aout the match, both teams want to win, but when it comes to taking a stand on “everyone’s equal value”, we are on the same page and we want to show that football is open to everyone with this joint action’, says Karin Heri, responsible MFF in society and responsible for social contacts at Swedish Elite Football.
World Pride is currently taking place in Malmö and Copenhagen. On Friday, a seminar was held in Malmö and on Saturday, the match in the Allsvenskan between Malmö FF and IFK Gothenburg was played in jerseys with rainbow colors and with a league logo in the colors of the rainbow.
‘Malmö FF and IFK Gothenburg are two clubs that many are interested in and follow and by doing this together we can spread knowledge and increase awareness of these important issues. For us, it is important that we continuously, in everyday life, work with this type of humanistic stance, and that it permeates everything we do’, says Karin Heri.
The main aim of the seminar was to show the equal value of all and that our freedom is not to be taken for granted. Swedish Elite Football believes that the 32 elite clubs in the Allsvenskan and Superettan, with their players and leaders, are role models who also have a strong image, especially in their local areas. Association life has been involved in building the Swedish welfare society.
‘We can influence incredibly much, the football family is part of our society’, says Beatrice Clarke, responsible for sustainability and community involvement at Swedish Elite Football.
‘We must also not forget that our everyday business is to play football. We need to take responsibility internally and review issues that are difficult. If we are to be strong role models in our society, we also need to take responsibility for ourselves. Values guide our strategies, they tell us what we are and where we are going’, Beatrice Clarke continues.
In recent years, some players have spoken about their mental illness. Swedish Elite Football has identified that there is a need for players to talk. In a collaboration with Mind who with their knowledge and expertise in the issue will work to implement activities and training in these issues.
‘If you do not know who you are, how do you know where you are going somewhere?’, Beatrice Clarke concludes.
IFK Gothenburg lined up in the seminar with sustainability manager Elisabeth Anderton and former player Donald Niklasson. The duo told about a former player in IFK Gothenburg who during his career kept his sexual orientation secret and that Donald Niklasson told about sports and homosexuality during his career in the 60s and 70s.
‘Everyone is different. It is good that we can create this knowledge and awareness and learn from each other together. We are different and it should be perfectly okay. We must really be who we really are’, says Elisabeth Anderton, Sustainability Manager at IFK Gothenburg.
Also participating in the seminar were Mark Levengood, Richard Söderberg and Marcus Urban, among others. Moderator was Henrik Johnsson.
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