Ontario refugee agencies host soccer tournament to build community and friendship
Refugees from all over the world came together for an annual soccer tournament in North York this Saturday organized
as a way to help newcomers build connections in Canada, and take their minds off the stress of being in a new country.
The tournament was put on by the Ontario Coalition of Service Providers for Refugee Claimants, a group of agencies and refugee housing services that are located in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), said, located in Toronto.
Francisco Vidal, executive director of Sojourn House, which provides emergency shelter and transitional housing services to newly arrived refugees in the GTA, said the tournament "uses soccer as a tool to build community and promote healthy lifestyles."
Participating in the matches also helps improve players' mental and physical health, he said.
"Some of [the players] have not had their refugee claim hearing yet," he said.
"This puts their mind away into something that can build community and friendship."
Event an opportunity to share experiences
Dany Abuela attended the tournament for the first time on Saturday.
Abuela moved to Toronto from Ecuador in January with his family. They have been staying at Romero House, an organization that provides refugee claimants with transitional housing and immigration support.
"We are happy. Canada is a great country," he said. "This event for us is very important because we can speak with the other people, know their experience."
Tenzin Khentse moved to Canada from India in 2021 and now works at the FCJ Refugee Centre as a youth leader focused on preventing human trafficking.
He said the event is a good distraction for those dealing with refugee and asylum procedures.
"Football is something that everybody enjoys. It's something everybody can relate to, and it's a really good distraction, you just forget about your problems for a while," said Khentse.
This year, Vidal said there has been "a lot of hype" around the tournament because of the 2026 FIFA World Cup — which will be hosted in Canada, U.S. and Mexico — as well as the story of Canadian soccer star Alphonso Davies, who was born in a refugee camp in Ghana before he moved to Canada when he was five years old.
Soccer team is like a 'new family in Canada'
Some refugees living in refugee houses do not have family in Canada, said Diana Gallego, the co-executive director of the FCJ Refugee Centre, located in York.
"To become a member of a soccer team, it's kind of [like] 'This is my new family in Canada,'" she said.
Gallego said she fled Colombia 21 years ago with her husband and her son. Her son played in the tournament on Saturday.
"When we are forced to leave our countries, we do it because our lives are at risk," she said.
"To come here and to find an open home and somebody that can welcome you is really important."
The coalition has organized five tournaments since 2018. This year marks the first time an agency from Hamilton participated in the tournament, as a way to engage with refugess outside the GTA, Vidal said.
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