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Sport builds closer-knit, healthier, and happier communities. Being part of a team fosters feelings of belonging and purpose, while physical activity enhances fitness and mental health. Such benefits are especially precious for asylum seekers and refugees.
At the societal level, sport also represents a powerful tool for developing cross-cultural relationships between ethnic communities and improving social cohesion of migrants with the local population. This is especially important in Cyprus, where tensions between communities have been strained in recent years.
Sport Vision contributes to this effort through four main avenues:
The Sport Vision Football League
Ten mixed nationality teams play each other over the course of six months, giving over a hundred asylum seekers, refugees, and locals the opportunity to develop healthy routines, a sense belonging in their teams, and build bridges with team mates from different cultures. This year, the initiative is being expanded to Women's teams and U18s.
Africa Nations Cup Cyprus
Each August, Sport Vision hosts AFCON Cyprus, four-week knockout tournament involving teams of nationals from Cyprus, Cameroon, Guinea, DRC, Sierra Leone, and Nigeria.
Grand Intercultural Festival Cyprus
With the first instalment scheduled for this May, the Grand Intercultural Festival aims to bring together 500 asylum seekers, refugees, and locals to celebrate their cultures. Traditional food, dance, and music will be shared, providing a platform for the development of cross-cultural relationships and community spirit.
Community Response Initiatives
Those who attend Sport Vision football events are asked to contribute to community service projects, supporting local municipal councils in work such as rubbish clean-ups in towns and beaches, planting and cutting of trees in public places, and setting up annual events.
Our Story
Founder John Nweti has been organising football tournaments since the age of 11. His first, the Trinity Fustal Tournament, an annual competition for young people in his hometown, aimed to combine his love for football with the Bible teachings instilled in him by his mother.
Having continued to host footballing events throughout his teen years, he was determined to use his experience to make a similarly positive impact in Cyprus. This led to the birth of Sport Vision later in 2018, which was created when John was still living in the Hope for Children shelter in Nicosia, having arrived in Cyprus just a few months earlier.
Starting with three participating teams, by 2020 eight sides were involved; today, hundreds of asylum seekers and refugees participate in Sport Vision events every year.
Our Team
Our Partners
Sport Vision is hugely grateful for the support of its partners.
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