A Republic of Ireland squad will fly to Switzerland on Tuesday as one of eight teams at the UNITY EURO Cup, a new tournament in the frame of the annual world Refugee Day which brings together national associations that have responded to people arriving in their countries seeking refuge/international protections, by providing opportunities for them to engage in their local communities via football.

The tournament has been developed by UEFA alongside UNHCR, the United Nations Refugee Agency. Ireland was chosen as one of eight teams to compete in the inaugural UNITY EURO Cup thanks to its long-standing partnership work in the Ringsend area of Dublin, to engage young adults in football programmes. The team is made up of 70% of the players with a refugee background and 30% without.

The Ringsend project is led by FAI Development Officer Jonathan Tormey alongside Mick Byrne of Tusla who outlined his involvement and ongoing work with the FAI in integrating people throughout the country into their local communities through the power of football.

"I work in the after-care stage with Tusla, which involves everything socially, educational, housing etc. I’ve worked with FAI Development Officer Jonathan Tormey since 2007 when we decided to develop a football programme to introduce the young people to the game. We start by bringing young people from all around the country to Irishtown for a camp and get to know them and where they are placed. Our main goal is really to try and provide a link to get those who want to play for a team into one in their locality. This can build their confidence to get out into that local community," said Byrne.

"We work with people from all different parts of the world, predominantly from Africa with a considerable amount of people coming from Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria and most recently Ukraine. Football has always been a constant for all of our young people, it brings that togetherness. It allows people to come together to meet, be happy, healthy and to have that opportunity to play, because for a lot of our young people there has been a massive gap in their journeys, from leaving their country of origin and coming to Ireland. It becomes a bonus then if they are able to get onto a team which helps them to further integrate into local communities."

Tormey has been working with young people in Dublin for over 16-years and has been instrumental in the work and integration of so many young people in the community. Tormey will be coaching the team with Ireland Manager Stephen Kenny travelling as the official Irish ambassador.

"We have created a template with Tusla, supported by others such as Dublin City Council and to be able to bring a group of young people to Switzerland is just fantastic. 70% of the squad are from refugee backgrounds and we have three players who are from Ireland then too, which reiterates the integration.
‘It's an incredible, amazing experience for the young people. It’s hard to find the words to explain how much of a benefit it’s going to be to them. And not only to them, but to the wider group of young people watching them and looking at them going to represent not only their individual countries of origin but also representing themselves and Ireland. On a social, sport and health level, it really is an amazing opportunity for them.

"The intercultural department in the FAI led by Des Tomlinson do incredible work. This is a milestone for me, going to the first ever UNITY EURO Cup with a group of players, it is history in the making," Tormey added.

The squad will travel to Switzerland on Tuesday, having met up collectively for the first time last week. The excitement is building as Tormey outlined.

He said: "The priority going to the UNITY EURO Cup is not to win a trophy, the priority is to showcase what brilliant work can be done when a couple of agencies collaborate together. We can really see how football is such a massive tool that can be used for social inclusion and integration.

"We had training on Thursday which was the first time together as a team. On an individual basis a lot of the players had done camps with us as Mick outlined. During the session we ran a couple of ice-breaker to help them get to know each other. So getting them to find out where each other are from and their favourite sporting moments. The biggest reward for something like this was when one of the girls suggested the UNITY EURO Cup as was going to be her sporting moment. It really hit me as I was driving home and it’s really powerful how much football has helped these young people develop, integrate and grow in confidence.

"From the moment the players arrived, to when they got their training wear and jerseys, the players never stopped smiling. Then we are delighted to have Ireland Manager Stephen Kenny coming over as an ambassador and many of the players won’t realise the gravity of that until further down the line. There are really magical memories being made."

Tusla and the FAI have worked closely over a number of years and Tormey was full of praise for the partnership and support of Dublin City Council, UEFA and UNHCR.

"It’s phenomenal to be involved in the UNITY EURO Cup and hopefully it becomes an annual occurrence and that Ireland can be involved. Opportunities like this helps to strengthen our current programmes and relationship with Tusla. Hopefully there is a snowball effect and it can inspire other organisations to get involved or kids to get playing on an individual and community level.

"It’s a fantastic initiative from UEFA and the UNHCR, the United Nations Refugee Agency. It’s making young people’s dreams come true. As a human, the feelgood nature of being able to give somebody something, be it provide a training session, a pair of boots or kit. These are things we can often take for granted but when you see the journey some of the players have come through, being able to help is so fulfilling.

"Dublin City Council have been incredibly supportive throughout the entire process with the camps. They provide us with support, facilities free of charge and they always have open arms. They see the goodness in the work we do," Tormey added.

Ireland have been drawn in Group A with all games taking place on Wednesday, June 29th 2022.

UEFA UNITY EURO Cup - Group A
Republic of Ireland
Austria
France
Switzerland