Overcoming Antisemitism through Football – Frankfurt
15/11/2022
The spirit of football connects and brings together more people than almost any other activities in society. Every weekend, more than 80,000 football matches take place in Germany alone and millions of fans go to stadiums. Antisemitic hatred is often seen in sporting venues and matches in various forms, but they also have the potential to be the places of education, understanding and dialogue. It’s no secret that sport can serve as a tool to foster social cohesion.
The NOA Project aims to increase the awareness and sensitivities of the sporting community, including athletes, supporters, and officials to the dangers of antisemitism through its trainings across Europe in the coming months.
The first NOA Sport workshop took place on the 6th and 7th of September in Frankfurt allowed youth workers and social workers working with football fans and sport clubs to reflect on the specifics of educational work in sports and outline the next steps necessary to overcome antisemitism in football, and outline ideas for the design and content for projects in the future. The training also included information the current state of antisemitism in sports at the local, national, and European level, the symbols, acts, and chants associated with antisemitism; and provided basic knowledge about Jewish communal life and the history of antisemitism in Germany.
NOA is co-funded by the Rights, Equality and Citizenship Programme (2014-2020) of the European Union