Milan, 13 September 2021 – From Milan to Melbourne, via Nairobi, Rio de Janeiro, New York and Kolkata. An intense trip around the globe to tell the story of six social projects in six different cities, carried out by as many different organisations, with one common theme: sport as a tool for change, education and inclusion.
“From Milan to the World”, the contest created by Fondazione Milan in partnership with PUMA, will – from Monday 13 September – call the over 500 million Rossoneri fans to action, inviting them to learn about all the proposed social projects and to vote for one of them. The concrete ambition of the project is to donate €50,000 to the winning programme to develop the project, linked to one of the six cities and the six non-profit organisations involved.
The initiative is very simple: fans can visit fondazionemilan.org/contest to know more about the six projects and pick their favourite. In order to increase the value of their vote, fans will be able to add a selfie wearing the new Away Kit 21/22 and make a donation to your chosen project.
“From Milan to the World” is the inspiration for this season’s Away Kit, which the players will wear for the UEFA Champions League opener against Liverpool, and which embodies the positive impact that this Club has in Milan, in Italy, and in the World. AC Milan brings people together from different cultures, languages and ages as the club continues to expand its impact across the globe. The tight bond between AC Milan and its city includes a message of inclusion that extends from San Siro to six cities in six continents, embracing millions of fans. The six cities involved in the project are featured in the special golden AC Milan kit through a stylised representation of their borders to form a unique pattern, while the words “Fondazione Milan” are printed below the collar on the back of the shirt.
“AC Milan, above all, stands for a sense of community, as proven by the work done each day by Fondazione Milan,” explained Franco Baresi, Honorary Vice-President of AC Milan. “That is why it is fundamental to cast a light on stories such as those of the protagonists in the project, which remind us of the great value of sport as a tool for change. I am convinced that every Milanista will be happy to join the team in this initiative, together with the Club, Fondazione Milan and PUMA.”
We are really happy to be able to get this initiative going,” said Rocco Giorgianni, Fondazione Milan General Secretary. “Our collaboration with PUMA, which allowed
the Fondazione Milan logo to feature on an official jersey for the first time in the history of the Club, has allowed to us reach six cities in six continents and bring six projects together, in which sport is a tool for education and inclusion. Six contests that are very different from each other, all brought together through the presence of people that want to give children and kids in need the chance to develop their talents.”
THE PROJECTS INVOLVED IN “FROM MILAN TO THE WORLD”:
NEW YORK
The Success Academy Soccer Program, a subsidiary of New York-based Success Academy Charter Schools, aims to give all children – regardless of their social background or economic means – the opportunity to play sports and include soccer in their school routine, fostering both the growth of the individual and the positive and inclusive development of the entire American soccer scene.
RIO DE JANEIRO
The Gol De Letra Foundation, based in Sao Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, is joining the contest with an innovative project that consists of a training course addressed to the so-called community leaders who already use sports as a powerful tool to promote inclusion and social change.
KOLKATA
The Asha Bhavan Centre, based in Kolkata, is joining the contest through its educational and rehabilitative activities designed for children, and girls, with disabilities, whose lives are characterized by both economic and educational poverty, and exclusion from the life of their community. Through an all-around assistance, the association aims to give them back the right to sport and health.
MELBOURNE
The Centre for Multicultural Youth presents Welcome Football, a sporting and educational programme dedicated to newly-arrived youth from migrant and refugee backgrounds that uses the universal language of football and sport to support them as they are settling down and to foster greater social cohesion and participation in the life of their new community.
NAIROBI
Alice for Children aims to give young girls who live in the slums of Nairobi the chance to chase their dreams. In a world in which their cry of suffering seems unheard, sports can be the perfect tool to restore their dignity and confidence in the future, making them the true protagonists of a sporting and social battle, both on and off the field.
MILANO A social project designed to tackle educational poverty using football to contribute to the re-education and to the subsequent social reintegration of youth in conflict with the law and at risk of early school leaving who live in the Kayròs Association’s facilities based in Vimodrone, Milan, already featured in “From Milan with Love: Next Gen” initiative.
Discover the projects and VOTE for your favorite:
The whole documentary about Sport for Change – From Milan to the World made possible thanks to Puma and AC Milan.
