Goals for Girls: The Movie

This post is by Emily Robbins of Goals for Girls: The Movie.

Image credit: http://goalsforgirlsthemovie.org/press/gallery/

The good news is that a recent study released by University of Pennsylvania professor Betsey Stevenson confirms that women who participate in sports achieve greater success in the classroom and higher rates of employment.  The bad news, though, is that there are still too many women around the world that are denied an equal right to play sports and reap these positive benefits.  We need to work together to change that reality.  That is why I am sharing with you a documentary film project called Goals for Girls: The Movie about a girls’ soccer team from the slums of Buenos Aires, Argentina, fighting for their right to play soccer despite having little support from their families and community.

The documentary is currently being filmed by San Telmo Productions, in the South American country of Argentina, where soccer is a national obsession.  That is, men’s soccer is a national obsession.  There are dozens of popular men’s club teams and the Argentine government recently allocated $155 million to subsidize the broadcast of men’s soccer games on television. Conversely, there are no women’s professional soccer teams and no legislation to guarantee equal funding for women’s sports.  Many families will invest their time and money to provide their sons with opportunities to play soccer, but won’t make the same commitment for their daughters.  During one of the first media mentions of women’s soccer, the commentary was peppered with comments about the players’ physical features.  There is still a long way to go in Argentina before women’s soccer is treated as a legitimate sport.

The girls’ soccer players featured in Goals for Girls: The Movie live in one of Buenos Aires’ poorest shantytowns.  Because of their socioeconomic status and their gender, they are burdened with the stereotype that they will amount to nothing more than being a teenage mother, a criminal, or a maid.  But these girls are aiming to use the camaraderie, confidence, and skills learned while playing soccer to help break the cycle of poverty.  There is Karen, 16, who wants to play soccer in the majors and Laura, 18, who hopes to become a physical education teacher so she can encourage other girls to play soccer.  Goals for Girls: The Movie will give these girls a voice so that their community will realize that girls have an equal right to play soccer, and that the sport can help improve girls’ lives.  The documentary will chronicle both the struggles and triumphs of the team, such as the neighborhood boys who disrupt their practices and a few of the players’ journey to the Homeless World Cup in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Below is a clip from the documentary:

The filmmakers are seeking donations to help ensure that the movie reaches the widest audience possible and to provide a video workshop for the players.  In order to allow the girls soccer team to take back the narrative of their own stories, the filmmakers will be providing them with an instructional video workshop so that they can conduct their own interviews and record their personal testimonies about why they want to play soccer.  I urge you to visit the Goals for Girls: The Movie website to read more and donate.  Every dollar counts.

Image credit: goalsforgirlsthemovie.org/press/gallery

Now that researchers have officially linked women’s sports to educational and personal gains, now we need to connect more women to sports.  The girls playing soccer in the slums of Buenos Aires are the most in need of the educational and professional benefits that sports provide, which is all the more reason why women’s sport should be promoted, not discouraged.  By lending your support and your voice to help spread the world about Goals for Girls: The Movie, you can help strengthen the voice of this slum girls’ soccer team as they show the world that when we share the playing field, everybody wins.

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