Constructing and funding Belgian Red Courts

Back in 2005, the RBFA built 40 mini-football pitches (courts) in different municipalities in Belgium. Now, 15 years later, we want to start a new chapter on the occasion of our 125th anniversary.

Our objective is to renovate those 40 mini-pitches all over the country within four years. It is very important for us to renovate, rather than build new courts, because this is the most sustainable option and it is therefore in line with our strategy to be sustainable, environmentally caring and inclusive. More specifically, it is a way to upgrade public spaces, spaces that are steadily decreasing in number.

Strengthening links

Through this initiative, we also want to strengthen the link between the RBFA and the 40 local communities by creating a programme of activities for each court and holding the Belgian Red Courts Cup. The programme will use the power of sport to work on the prevention of radicalisation. Moreover, we aim to educate and raise awareness on different topics, such as inclusion, health and wellbeing, ethics and the environment.

Youngsters who live near the courts will have the opportunity to take up a leadership role within their community as a Belgian Red Court coach. They will receive training on the objectives of the court, how to organise an activity in a safe way and how to use the power of football to have a local impact.

The Belgian Red Courts Cup, on the other hand, will be a national football tournament for different target groups (youngsters, people with disabilities, older people [walking football], women, fans, etc.).

Former men’s and women’s national team players are taking on the role of ambassador for each court.

In order to fund this and other social responsibility projects, we are auctioning the shirts worn by our men’s and women’s national team players on the pitch, as well as other memorabilia (e.g. captain’s armbands, pennants, and signed books) and experiences (e.g. a visit or a training session at our national training centre).

Dedicated platform

We are doing this through a dedicated platform, MatchWornShirt.com, where it is possible to bid for the shirts during the match, thereby adding a new experience for fans when watching our games. As many clubs already use the same platform, many football fans from different parts of the world are registered on it, which attracts a large audience for the auctions of clubs’ Belgian players’ shirts and results in substantial income for our social responsibility projects.

This article originally appeared in UEFA Direct 196