Women are also Present in Football

Campaign Status

Ongoing Offline: The campaign is currently ongoing offline and, thus still in the process of collecting funds.

Summary

The campaign aims to provide football training to 30 girls to help them gain admission to the Physical Education and Sports departments of universities.

Challenge

Did you know that in our country, especially due to financial constraints, many girls struggle to pursue higher education? As the Karadeniz Ereğli High School Sports Club, we have embarked on a journey to provide football training to our girls to help them gain admission to the Physical Education and Sports departments of universities, aiming to overcome the challenges they face in pursuing higher education due to financial constraints. With this campaign, we aim to enable our girls to pursue their education and sports careers just like their male counterparts and put an end to negative discrimination.

Solution

Although the Kdz. Ereğli High School Sports Club was officially established in 2019, since 2007, we have been striving to ensure the continuation of girls' academic education through football.

In our district of Kdz. Ereğli, after a group of young girls performed a demonstration match wearing traditional baggy trousers (şalvar) during a football tournament in 2005, there was a tremendous interest generated in women's football. The establishment of a women's football team under the auspices of the Kdz. Ereğli municipality greatly inspired the city. Many of our girls from Ereğli High School have risen to the national team, and they continue their sports careers in leading clubs across the country. Additionally, a majority of our girls contribute to sports as physical education teachers, coaches, and sports administrators.

One of the key figures who inspired women's football in our district is Ebru TOPÇU, whose interview serves as an inspiration to our girls. Here are some excerpts from the interview:

Question 1: "You're described as one of the most talented players in women's football, and we'd like to introduce you more closely to the football community. Let's start from the beginning, from your childhood, if you don't mind.

I was born in 1996 in Karadeniz Ereğli. I'm the daughter of a miner. My father worked at the Armutçuk Coal Mines and is now retired. My mother is a housewife. I have one sibling, an older brother who is also a football player. He came up through the Ereğli Belediyespor youth system and made it to the first team."

Question 2: How did your interest in football start? We don't actually see many girls involved in football in Turkiye...

I encouraged my brother to chase after the ball from a very young age. I used to play football with him in the streets. Berna Yeniçeri, who is now my friend from the National Team, was our next-door neighbor. Berna and I used to play football with our brothers all the time. Football was constantly discussed at home, and we always watched matches on TV. My childhood was spent in such a football-intensive environment. Seeing my interest and love for football, my father, who also played football in his youth and is a big fan of the sport, said when I turned 10, "A women's football team is being formed in Ereğli, you can join if you want." Naturally, he also saw that I was talented. With his encouragement, I participated in the tryouts, succeeded, and have been playing football ever since.

Having a national team player in the high school team must have positively influenced the results there.

This year, we became the Turkish champions with Ereğli High School. Ereğli places great importance on women's football in terms of infrastructure. Many young players are being trained. Therefore, this potential reflects on the high school team as well. Besides, the high school team consists of players from Kdz. Ereğlispor anyway.

Question 3: Who are the coaches who have contributed to your development so far?

At Kdz. Ereğlispor, Ömer Faruk Varlık, and Yıldıray Ağar, and from the school team, Erkan Kılıçarslan, have had a significant impact on us. The coaching team that first called me up to the U15 National Team consisted of Taygun Erdem, Necla Güngör, and Metin Akçevre.

As the Kdz. Ereğli High School Sports Club, we aim to enrich our club, established in 2019, by joining women's football leagues in the 2023-2024 season. Through football, we seek to contribute to our girls' academic careers and foster their self-confidence development.