I-ACT

Refugees united soccer academy - iact is serious about soccer, and serious about creating safe and joyful spaces for play. The refugees united soccer academy (rusa) blends skills, drills, and team-building exercises with a coaching pedagogy designed to support the social and emotional well-being of girls and boys ages 6 to 13. This community-led program is rooted in trauma-informed care, strength-based coaching, gender equality, inclusion, and a uniting passion for soccer. Rusa is led by two men and two women team from the community. Each rusa session begins with a mindfulness exercise, followed by drills that focus on foundational soccer skills and small-sided play. Coaches incorporate lessons around key issues such as hygiene, safety, child rights, peacebuilding, and gender equality. Each academy strives to ensure that at least 50% of players are girls. Rusa is operating in 12 camps in eastern chad, the u.s.-mexico border, central african republic, cameroon, and armenia.