Shakhtar and UEFA start joint project near the contact line
Shakhtar Donetsk have kicked off their Come On, Let’s Play project in the cities and towns of Donbass near the ‘contact line’ which divides the
government-controlled area (GCA) and the non-government controlled area (NGCA) in East Ukraine. It’s estimated that there are over 55,000 children living within 15km of the contact line on the government-controlled side alone.
The project is implemented by the Shakhtar Social foundation jointly with the UEFA Foundation for Children and is aimed at developing children’s grassroots football in Ukraine and promoting a healthy lifestyle. On the 30th of November 2018, Shakhtar Social won a grant programme of the UEFA Foundation for Children and received funding for implementing the Come On, Let’s Play! project in the cities of Donetsk and Luhansk, regions which are near to the contact line.
The training sessions have already started in the town of Shchastya in Luhansk Oblast (1.5 kilometres away from the contact line), Toretsk in Donetsk Oblast (10 kilometres away), and in Avdiivka (5 kilometres away). Before the end of April, Kurakhove, Mar’inka, Krasnohorivka, Volnovakha, and Popasna will also join the project.
540 children aged between 7 to 12 years old will be able to play football for free at 8 locations near the contact line. The training sessions are held at modern grounds with synthetic flooring three times a week and 24 coaches will work with the kids. Shakhtar Social has provided the participants with player kits, footballs and everything necessary for their training sessions.
Scoring for Health
