Feyenoord and AS Roma hand in hand in the Tirana districts
On the pitch, AS Roma and Feyenoord will be battling it out to win the Conference League in Tirana on Wednesday. However, the clubs will be working together outside of the competition.
Starting today, they will visit schools and social organisations to give children in the Albanian capital not only football training, but also a lasting reminder of the two clubs’ visit.
”The decision to join forces was quickly made. When it became clear that we were through to the final in Tirana, we immediately contacted AS Roma to make a good plan.” (…) “Tirana will forever be part of Feyenoord’s history. We therefore want to try and leave something behind, so that the local population will look back on us and our stay in their city with a positive feeling.”
Ton Strooband, manager of Social Affairs at Feyenoord.
Both football clubs have been running social programmes for years to change the lives of the inhabitants of their own cities in the areas of sport, education and work. Doing the same in Tirana was a matter of course.
More than football
Meeting the representatives of AS Roma and Feyenoord is an experience they will cherish forever. It is also good that they experience that football clubs nowadays are and do more than just play the matches they see on television. And that clubs are each other’s opponents on the field, but partners outside the lines.
“We are delighted to be working with Feyenoord to launch a series of sustainability initiatives within communities in Tirana.” (…) “Some of these activities are well established in the city of Rome and we are delighted to be able to transfer our legacy to the city where the UEFA Europa Conference League final will be held.”
Pietro Berardi, director of AS Roma.
Strong together
It is not the first time Feyenoord have organised activities around European matches. The club has previously arranged staff exchanges with Manchester United, Rangers FC and Hapoel Beer Sheeva, among others. We can’t do this on our own, of course. UEFA, the UEFA Foundation, local authorities, the mayor, the embassies of both Italy and the Netherlands and other organisations help us to make this possible. Together we will make it an unforgettable day for these children,’ Strooband concludes.
