Dialect 2 News

Oltalom Sport Association uses the unique power football has in creating a receptive environment that foster social inlcusion of refugees and third country nationals residing in Hungary, with a special focus in girls who don’t have previous experience in playing sport with their male peers or playing sport at all in their country of origins. 

Early Saturday morning in the City Park, one of the biggest public green areas of Budapest, the capital of Hungary. Six girls are playing together with two adolescenst, they are having a game according tot eh Homeles World Cup rule system. The girls are preparing for their ever first HWC tournament in France, whereas the two male athlete are already ’senior’ HWC players, have been to several tournaments and now they are here to assist the girls’ process before their own training session starts. 

It is one of those hot summer days, when already at 8.30, everyone is sweating. However, that doesn’t keep Shira from wearing a headscarf known as a characteristic for women in Islamic cultures. The scene is the regular Saturday training of Oltalom Sport Association, delivered since 2005 at the same time (Saturday morning). Right now the girls are by themselves, having a bonding and learning experience disguised in a football training. However, soon they will join the rest of the team on the big pitch, and will play matches in mixed teams with the boys.

The organization is known to be a safe haven for marginalised groups, where children can experience a childhood without suffering from mental and physical atrocities. Therefore the trainings are quite diverse in terms of language, religion, cultural ot ethnical backgrund. If you listen carefully, you could hear at least three languages (Hungarian, English, Arabic). Athletes are training and playing together in mixed team, a fact that in many of their countries of origin would have been unimaginable.  Here, the shared experience and passion will become an everyday reality, where they can still keep their traditions as they wish.

Doing sport for girls is not always common in the areas they come from. However, at Oltalom, trainings and activities are organized with social work informed care with special attention to he cultural traditions of the players. Oftentimes our female players are coming from communities, where girls and women are not valued in the same way as men are. They lack a healthy relationship model with the opposite gender, which often leads to their exploitation by their peers and also by their caretakers. 

Oltalom works with the vision to prevent fall out from society and to enhance social inclusion of at-risk and marginalised groups by using the power of sport. Following that idea, together with trainings, we offer gender based social assistance based on our players’ actual needs and strive to engage them in various, individual or group social work activities.

Experiencing the sense of belonging is essential for one’s social integration, which is fostered by knowing the culture of the host society. Researches have been proved that in order to foster one’s inclusion into the new environment, the hosting milieu should be sensitized equally. Through the Fair Play Football Roadshow initiative invented by OSA in 2012, the Association offers a chance to both newcomers and longtime inhabitants to be able to adjust to the un- or less known on the football pitch.  where with the use of football3, we aim to foster social inclusion and tolerance not only for our players but also for members of the host society. Our belief is that if the majority of the society sees and experiences representatives of minority groups in different roles than it is conveyed by mainstream media, it can foster a change in people’s mindset. Positive experiences can turn into changes in the attitudes which will find their ways into everyday life situations.

During the tournaments we aim to bring closer different social groups living next to each other, who, in their everyday life usually don’t, or rarely engage in conversation, and if they do so, most of the time these dialogues are full of tensions and in extreme cases, hatred. Encourage a dialogue between the two groups in a safe environment, with the emphasize on their shared passion, during a football3 game where they need to come to an agreement regarding their own game, with the presence of a football3 mediator might be a start for the groups to find a channel to each other, through which they are able to start, maintain, and with time improve a positive and progressive relationship which also serves their local community. Our aim is that they reach a level, where instead of only living next to each other, they rather live together.

Though addressing trauma and adversity migrant and refugee players went through is essential for physical and mental well-being, it is also crucial to focus on resilience factors for their successful social integration which fact is emphasized in every sport and social activity offered by Oltalom Sport Association for its players.

Dialect 2 News

The Homeless Euro 24 Championship was held in Hamburg, Germany, as an official side event of the official European Football Championship where Hungary was represented by the Oltalom Sports Association from june 16-22.

We started preparing and selecting the team months before the tournament, but ironically we found out on the penultimate day that our refugee goalkeeper from Afghanistan did not receive back his travel document from the immigration office which he gave them months before to renew it, so he could not join us, so we had to replace him with a younger player, with a kid from a children”s home, and get the allowance papers signed immediately by his guardian.

Of course, the day of the trip was not without excitement, as the player chosen to replace our player who had dropped out fell asleep, and it was only through the ingenuity of our coach that he too was able to get on the road.

Just like in the training sessions, the traveling team was made up of several nationalities: 5 Hungarians, one from Nigeria, one from Libya and one from Cameroon.

A great extra positive aspect of the trip was that in Hamburg we could reunite with two of our ex players now living in Germany. A refugee from Afghanistan who currently is living one hour from Hamburg, but in 2023 he was the one who came to the most training in the whole Oltalom team, he came to support us. Also another refugee from Albania, who had to leave Hungary many years before, came all the way from Dusseldorf and lived in our hotel and was helping the team throughout the whole week.

We reached the semi-finals of the tournament in good spirits, finishing top of our group, where a 5-2 win over Romania meant we reached the final. By the final, our players were already tired, so the trophy was lifted by a Lithuanian team consisting of more experienced players.

We were not the best team at the end of the tournament, but Emmanuel was the best player, who was praised for his football skills and for his particularly fair behavior.

Dialect 2 News

Partner organizations from Greece, Italy, Serbia and Hungary came together to create one awareness-raising video. All organizations worked with their local football teams in order to develop a video that showcases that football can be a wonderful means of bringing people together. The video aims to inform the public about the work the organizations are doing with DIALECT2 project in their countries for the past 2 years and the continuous effort to eliminate discriminatory behaviors and xenophobia through the methodology of football3.  



The video is available in English, Greek, Italian, Hungarian and Serbian. 

Dialect 2 News

On the 21st of May, DIALECT2 football team in Athens celebrated the completion of the piloting phase with a one-day event. Τhe celebration included multiple activities in different spots in Kolonos neighborhood.



Adolescents had the opportunity to come close to other kids and youngsters from the local community and share their love for football.  The event offered to people of all ages the chance to have fun, to join participatory activities and to enjoy a day that fostered community building.

Dialect 2 News

On April 6, 2024, the bustling City Park in Budapest, a beloved destination for weekend revelers, transformed into a vibrant stage for an innovative outdoor exhibition curated by OSA. Coinciding with OSA’s established Saturday training routines, the event capitalized on the park’s weekend foot traffic to attract a diverse crowd. Participants from the training sessions, along with their families and caregivers, mingled with a substantial influx of curious onlookers. From dawn to dusk, the atmosphere buzzed with excitement and a strong sense of community.

The day’s agenda was rich and varied, featuring an engaging mix of video presentations that highlighted inspiring stories and achievements, alongside exhilarating live football matches that captivated the audience. These activities created a lively and interactive environment, serving both to entertain and educate those in attendance. The compelling content on display ignited the interest of many visitors, fostering meaningful conversations with OSA coordinators, social workers, and enthusiastic participants of the training sessions. This direct interaction significantly boosted public engagement with OSA’s mission and ongoing projects.

Despite the dynamic and energetic setting, the outdoor ambiance presented some challenges in fully conveying the intricacies of the video presentations. The bustling background noise and intermittent distractions somewhat diluted the impact of the digital stories. Recognizing these hurdles, OSA is now planning to organize an indoor screening event. This forthcoming event aims to present their digital content creation projects in a more controlled environment, conducive to attentive viewing and deeper appreciation, allowing attendees to fully absorb the nuanced details of the narratives.

Dialect 2 News

About fifteen boys and girls playing football in the street with a white t-shirt. For football goals a gate on one side, and two trees on the other. Every now and then someone leaves the game, picks up their mobile phone or tablet and joins those who are walking around the square asking passers-by questions. 

“Do you think women are discriminated against in football?” “Do you think it is possible today in our city to play football without paying?”. “Does a foreign boy or girl have the same chance of playing in a team as an Italian?”. 

This was, more or less, the exhibition event of Dialect2 of the 6th of April, a moment when the boys and girls taking part to the project showed the inhabitants of the Bagnoli neighbourhood the results of the work done during the Football3 tournament and during the media literacy workshop. From Luigi, the youngest of the footballers, to Fatima and Hafiza, the two most assiduous mediators, everyone made their contribution, showing videos, making questions, talking and reflecting with the people on the issue of discrimination in sport and on how digital technologies can be transformed from a tool that too often spreads hatred and racism into a tool for reflection and inclusion. 

Young people, couples, adults and the elderly spent some of their time with the youngsters in the project, happy to see them get involved and take responsibility, for once, to teach the older people something. 

“This work is very important for these children – explains Daniela, a neighbourhood teacher – to whom the school almost never manages to give adequate answers. Over the years, many have found answers to their difficulties in activities organised by associations and other organizations; and in various ways such as painting, hip hop, football. I followed some of the activities of this project, and it was nice when I met my pupils! They were so proud to explain something to me, and to talk to me about how football should unite, make people get together. One of them told me that we have to speak more, because ‘mobile phones sometimes turn us against each other‘”.

The next event in Naples will be the final tournament of Football3, in which the boys and girls from Bagnoli will meet teams from the other neighbourhoods with whom they have already competed over the past two years, and other new teams or young people who are approaching the project. 

Dialect 2 News

Football Friends organized another amazing event to celebrate the successful completion of the pilot phase of Project Dialect 2. As a big finale, we hosted a memorable day filled with inspiring messages and football3. Our partner, Primary School Dragojlo Dudic, kindly hosted the event on Friday, April 5th, titled “Let’s Win Together.”
During this special day, students, teachers, and big number of guests had the chance to see the creative works made by students who took part in workshops. It was a display of talent and innovation that impressed everyone.

But the event wasn’t just about digital literacy. There was also an exciting football3 tournament, where teams showed fair play and teamwork while cheering for each other. It showed how working together and having fun can lead to success.
The “Let’s Win Together” event brought everyone together to celebrate teamwork, creativity, and inclusivity. It proved that when we collaborate, we can overcome challenges and achieve great things. Congratulations to all involved for making it a truly special day!

Dialect 2 News

On Saturday, April 6th the football team of #ActionAid’s Community Center in Athens presented its digital content projects at the Plato Academy. Through the projects they created, the adolescents talked about the topics of the #DIALECT2 program, racism, and xenophobia, while spreading the messages of acceptance and respect. The projects were also presented by partner countries Italy, Serbia, and Hungary, which are concurrently implementing the project. The event closed with many happy faces, food, and of course, football!

Stay tuned for the program’s next activities! 

Dialect 2 News

Six beautiful months are behind us, six months full of football and fun.

But that was not typical football we played; that was football3 in action—a game where fun, fairness, and friendship take center stage. As the matches kicked off, players from different backgrounds came together, united by their love for the beautiful game and a shared commitment to fair play.


Players have engaged in dialogue, resolving disputes with words instead of fouls, and celebrating each other’s successes with genuine joy. In football3, every match is an opportunity to learn, grow, and build meaningful connections. It’s about more than just winning or losing; it’s about the journey—the shared experiences, the friendships forged, and the memories that last a lifetime.

For the last six months, we played with passion, played with purpose, and most importantly, we played with a smile on our faces. Because in football3, the true victory lies in the joy of playing together and having fun.

Dialect 2 News

If you were to ask us what children are better at or what they enjoy more, the answer we would give you before the start of the project is definitely football.

But what we learned in the previous period and disproved the initial thought is that there is no significant difference between football and digital literacy workshops.

We concluded that children enjoy both phases of the project equally. From the experience we gained in the previous period, it is clear that children have a desire to acquire new knowledge and skills, especially in the field of digital literacy and expression through video content. 

What is particularly important to us and what we are proud of is the development of teamwork skills, emotional intelligence (to learn about their emotions and how to express them as adequately as possible), inclusiveness, responsibility, and critical thinking, both on the pitch and at workshops in the classroom.

At the workshops, we also learned how to create digital content such as videos, blogs, posts, using digital platforms (e.g., online chats). The children learned to use the Internet as a source of information in a positive way, to distinguish fake from real news, and how to verify it. 

Through all these activities, the children acquired not only basic digital literacy skills related to the project, but also in a wider professional and social context.

The combination of football and workshops provides a comprehensive experience that supports the overall development of children by preparing them for the opportunities and challenges that await them in the future.