Free Footie’s mission is to provide vulnerable kids with the opportunity to play in a safe, accessible, and inclusive environment at no cost to them or their families – because when kids are empowered through play, their families, their schools, and their communities are empowered as well. Free Footie started eleven years ago, and it ensures that any girl or boy in Grades 3, 4, 5 or 6 who attends schools in the area they serve and wants to play sports, can.
There are no registration fees, and every child is given a pair of shin pads, soccer socks, shorts, a ball, and a jersey. Free Footie is about so much more than soccer. For many kids, it is a break from stressful home life, to stay off the streets, and get onto the playing field where their energy and ambitions can be directed in positive ways. In Free Footie these kids learn about teamwork, sportsmanship, and feel the thrill of pulling on a jersey to represent their school in weekly games. They develop a sense of belonging,something many of them have never truly felt before.
