Update by N.E.C. of MTF Fund-winning Electric Wheelchair Football project

Update by N.E.C. of MTF Fund-winning Electric Wheelchair Football project

After the Meer dan Voetbal Conferentie in the Netherlands, last October, Dutch EFDN member N.E.C. Nijmegen received a cheque worth of €10,000 from the More than Football Fund, launched by EFDN and Unibet, for their Electric Wheelchair Project. They explain now how this project started and how it will be further enrolled.

On Wednesday 14 September 2022, eight young participants with a physical challenge, led by general manager Wilco van Schaik, signed a contract with N.E.C. to participate in Electric Wheelchair Football. Since then, a training session has been completed every Saturday afternoon (holidays excepted) in the gymnasium of the Sint Maartenskliniek which has been enormously well received by the youngsters and their parents.

The training sessions focus on wheelchair agility and, as with regular football, there are numerous exercise forms with extra-large balls that have been purchased for this purpose. In addition, fun and the social aspect are paramount in this new activity of N.E.C. Maatschappelijk. However, the coming period will also be dominated by the further development of Electric Wheelchair Football, focusing for example on the knowledge of training and the rules of the game at matches. Together with the KNVB and colleagues from England, workshops will be held for this purpose.

‘We are enormously proud to be able to offer Electric Wheelchair Football and in this way contribute to the development of additional sports and exercise provision.’

Bart de Lange, project coordinator of N.E.C. Maatschappelijk

Thanks to the More than Football Fund, Dutch EFDN members can apply for a grant
from €2,500 to €10,000 for innovative projects for which it is more difficult for them to obtain funding from other funds that can obtain. With this fund, EFDN, together with Unibet Impact, aims to increase the innovation of social projects increase and strengthen cooperation between clubs.

About More than Football Fund

EFDN and Unibet Impact are jointly launching the “More than Football Fund” in the Netherlands. With this fund EFDN and Unibet Impact want to further strengthen the social strength of clubs and further increase the impact of the projects further. The social activities of the Dutch clubs also promote an active and healthy lifestyle that contributes to both physical and mental health.