On the International Day for Women's Football, we celebrate the transformative power of sport and its ability to promote leadership and to address social problems with a gender perspective.

FUTBOL MAS, MAY 2024. -Promoting sport for girls is an essential component of building fairer and more equal societies, capable of closing gender gaps once and for all. The practice of sport fosters fundamental values that transcend the sporting arena. Since 2015, Fundación Fútbol Más has been a pillar in the promotion of gender equity through its intervention programme in various neighbourhoods and schools in Peru. Thanks to this initiative, girls and boys share fields without distinction, learning integral values such as respect, teamwork and joy.

“Girls should play football because they have the same capacity and the same potential as boys. At Futbol Mas they teach us to be equal; we all have the same rights, and that encourages me to play the sport that I love so much” shared Nini, participant of the program Futbol Mas in Marcona, Ica.

At the end of 2018, Foundation Futbol Mas launched the campaign ‘El Balón No Tiene Género‘ (The ball has no gender) which seeks to break the outdated stigmas that associate football exclusively with men, promoting the professional and media valorisation of female footballers. The campaign in Peru gained momentum last year with testimonials from inspiring women who have challenged their limits and fulfilled their dreams through sport.

“Football transformed my reality because it opened many doors for me to become a good professional in the future, not only in football. It taught me to pursue my dreams; if I wanted something, I had to work hard despite people who didn't want me to play because I was a woman. But I knew I wanted to be in a women's club, and today I can fight for a league title. That's the beauty of footballl”, shared Nahomí Martinez, football player from Liga 1, who visited the pitch as an ambassador of Futbol Mas along with girls looking to break the stereotype that sport is mostly male.

At Futbol Mas, we strive daily to break gender stereotypes on and off the pitch. We continue to work to build a world without discrimination, fairer for all. In 2023, more than 30% of the participants in our programmes were girls. In addition, a survey held with girls, boys and young people of Futbol Mas revealed that 77 per cent believe that the ball has no gender and that they are aware of concepts of gender equality, demonstrating the impact of our work.

‘The teachers help us to overcome stereotypes and prejudices that used to be very common, like men can do this and women cannot. We women also play football. We learn from the men and the teachers help us and teach us’.commented Evelin, participant of the project Playing Safe (Jugando Seguros) in Lima. In the same line, Daniella Fernandez, a sports reporter, said: ‘Football is very closely linked to my life, because since I was a little girl I played in a park where we used to put two stones to mark the goals. That's how I made friends in football. Regardless of gender, boys and girls played together".

On this International Day for Women's Football, we want to encourage the participation of women and girls in sports and community. We know that it is an ongoing challenge to fight against historical stereotypes, but we hope that the pitch is an equal space and safe for everyone.

Futbol Mas will continue to work tirelessly to ensure that all girls and women can see sport as an opportunity to grow and develop in a free and fair environment.