The Canadian Street Soccer Association (CSSA) is hosting soccer programs across multiple provinces, inviting unhoused individuals to showcase their skills and potentially represent Canada at the 2025 Homeless World Cup in Oslo, Norway, from August 23-30. CSSA, a non-profit organization, uses soccer as a tool to help people experiencing homelessness regain confidence, build community, and work toward reintegration into society.

CSSA is inviting vulnerable people from Quebec, Ontario, Alberta, and British Columbia to come and play soccer twice a week. Bob Humphreys, Quebec program director at the Canadian Street Soccer Association, supervised one such recent practice session and is happy to be able to give homeless people an opportunity to build community and recover from hardship.

Players selected through CSSA’s programs will represent Canada at the Homeless World Cup, an annual tournament organized by the Homeless World Cup Foundation. The event aims to empower individuals facing homelessness and social exclusion. Through sport, the initiative fosters hope, inclusion, and a shift in public perceptions about homelessness, with the ultimate goal of a world without homelessness.

Hossam Khedr, the CEO of the Canadian Street Soccer Association, announced that they will recruit eight players for a mixed men’s and women’s team. Currently, they are looking for players in Quebec, Ontario, Alberta, and British Columbia. They plan to include other provinces in Canada for future Homeless World Cup tournaments. Each team participating in the Homeless World Cup will have four players: one goalkeeper and three outfielders. The pitch will be smaller than a regular FIFA soccer field. The tournament takes place in a different city each year; previous locations include Paris and Rio de Janeiro.

Source: Comox Valley Record