THE RAINBOW TEAM

By building a soccer team of boys from different backgrounds in Cape Town, Pernilla Landstedt created a platform for opportunities and unity among young South Africans. We spoke to her about the initiative.

How Pernilla Landstedt used soccer as a platform for opportunity and unity among young boys in SA

The idea was born when I visited my home country, Sweden, in the summer of 2014, and my son, then 12, asked if we could travel to the Gothia Cup in Gothenburg with a South African team,’ says Pernilla Landstedt, founder of the Rainbow Team. ‘At that stage he was playing for Camps Bay Football Club and the likelihood of them going to the Gothia Cup with one of their teams wasn’t very big. It got me thinking – maybe we could do it with a twist, to create opportunities for boys who wouldn’t necessarily have the chance to do these kinds of things.’

The Gothia Cup is the world’s largest international youth soccer tournament. With 80 nations entering soccer teams of girls and boys between the ages of 12 to 18 each year, it’s a meeting place for participants of different backgrounds, religions and cultures where soccer is the common denominator. ‘I thought it might work to put together a team where half of the boys would be underprivileged, and would probably never have the opportunity to do something like this or to travel, and the other half would be privileged kids whose parents would be able to fund the experience. I approached Anees Abbas, the head coach of my son’s soccer club. He immediately embraced the idea and started working on putting together dedicated players to form a Rainbow Team.’ Anees also runs the Legends soccer school during the off-season, so he is well connected with other clubs and could easily find suitable players.

Pernilla has worked in the travel industry all her life and now runs a company called Propel Africa, a destination management company organising specialised tours and experiences in South Africa. She knew that whenever her clients – mostly Scandinavians – came to South Africa, they wanted to give back in some way, so she knew who to turn to raise the R30 000 she needed per boy to fund the whole experience. ‘My clients truly want to engage with South Africa, not only by doing superficial tours but by doing things like assisting with clothing and school necessi-

“The boys had to adhere to the code of conduct we’d put together for the Rainbow Team and behave well at their schools – academically and otherwise.”

ties for creches & schools in a less fortunate area or building a house in a day, or planting trees. I didn’t really want to compete with other fundraising initiatives in SA – I wanted the money to come from overseas.’

Once she’d raised the money, she and Anees Abbas met with the boys’ parents to explain what it was all about. Then the Rainbow Team started training.

‘From the outset, it was about more than just the soccer,’ Pernilla says. ‘The boys had to adhere to the code of conduct we’d put together for the Rainbow Team and behave well at their schools – academically and otherwise. It’s very important to pitch up not only when a game is on: you need to come to training, be committed, well dressed, well behaved and show courtesy to your coach and your peers.’

Much like the Fifa World Cup, the Gothia Cup selects a team from each country to represent their nation in the opening ceremony. The Rainbow Team submitted a proposal and were chosen. ‘Representing South Africa in front of 60 000 people was really something special,’ says coach Anees.

The Rainbow Team set off to Sweden in July 2015. ‘We went to Stockholm first, playing a friendly match and experiencing the city a bit,’ says Pernilla. ‘Then we went to Gothenburg for the tournament. The boys were completely over the moon – especially the kids who had never been on a plane.’

When they returned, she got feedback from both the boys and their parents. The responses were overwhelmingly positive. Never before had they felt such togetherness with fellow South Africans, they said. The project had given them a special memory to treasure for life.

‘They called it the ubuntu of a lifetime,’ says Pernilla. ‘Now when we come down to the soccer pitch – not all of the boys play in Camps Bay; they’re all from different clubs – it’s about something bigger. We have Muslims, Christians and Jews; black, coloured and white kids; a Swede, an Italian South African, Portuguese South African, Xhosa – you name it.’ On the field, everyone is equal and everyone is connected.

The experience was a huge success and they knew they had to do it again. ‘Some of the sponsors were also asking, “When is the next one?”’ says Pernilla. ‘So we did it again. Then, to our surprise, we were once again chosen to represent SA in the opening ceremony – they don’t usually choose the same team twice.’

The 2016 ceremony was extra special, because it took place on Mandela Day, so the Rainbow Team carried a Mandela flag. ‘We took some of the boys from the previous year and some new boys.’

The second year proved another major success. ‘I think the Rainbow Team is a microcosm of the Gothia Cup, because it’s really about getting people from all over the world to integrate, to play together, to have fun together. Globally, integration is a politically loaded issue and here in South Africa we’ve come a long way!’ The Rainbow Team grew into the Rainbow Project – the players are supported in various ways and are taught about paying it forward: ‘We want to give the boys the tools they need to become responsible, positive, tolerant and resourceful South Africans. We also offer tuition to players who need help improving their marks at school. The lessons are sponsored by Swedish individuals and companies. We have just started a mentoring programme to introduce the boys to role models from all walks of life who they can speak to about various life issues. For example, I took one of the boys to the physio when he had an injury, and afterwards he said, “You know, Pernilla, if I can’t become a soccer player, maybe I’ll become a physio.” The exposure to different dreams and ambitions is great. We would also like our Rainbow boys to learn how to become mentors to younger players who could eventually join the next Rainbow Team. And we want the boys to understand that they are privileged; that they can also give back to other soccer initiatives.’

The Rainbow Team’s ambition is to be a fixture at the Gothia Cup for the foreseeable future, says Pernilla. And they’ll stay true to their motto: “A part of something bigger.”

‘This year we did the pre-tour in southern Sweden and “walked in the footsteps” of Zlatan Ibrahimovic, who comes from one of the roughest neighbourhoods in Sweden and is one of the world’s best soccer players today.’

Captain Sihle Songanga explains what it means to be part of the Rainbow Team: ‘We get to know one another and we can see how other people live and what their life situation is like. This helps us to understand each other better, and to understand each other’s view on things.’