The football family reframing the lives of young migrants

Most professional photographers will tell you that images are their world. Football fans often describe their beloved sport the same way. They seem poles apart but consider how much the two might have in common. Both take skill, creativity and dedication. And they can also bring together like-minded people for a shared purpose.

So, it is no surprise that acclaimed photographers and filmmakers Ofelia de Pablo and Javier Zurita spotted these parallels and, further, the role that football plays in forging strong and supportive communities – particularly for those who are far away from home. While travelling, they observed how football’s global appeal means that wherever you are in the world, you can take your love with you and you’re never far away from others who share your passion.

It was through this understanding that they met the footballers of FC Darna, Barcelona, a club where every player has two important things in common: the beautiful game and how they came to be in Spain. Darna means ‘home’ in Arabic and the club began as a way to comfort and support young migrants who had arrived alone in Barcelona, in search of a better future.

Founded in 2019 with an abundance of hope, but limited resources, the team has surpassed all expectations, climbing the Quarta Catalana (the fourth Catalan football division) and, more importantly, becoming the family which these young men so sorely needed. Ofelia and Javier saw the beauty in this, featuring the young men in a project called Football for Hope, which documented “the fight against social exclusion through the medium of a soccer ball.” It was a huge success, but they knew that holding up a mirror was not telling the whole story. The players needed to share their own experiences and speak their truths. “We are used to hearing bad stories about migrants,” says Ofelia, speaking to RTVE Spain. “It’s the same narrative always.” This was an opportunity to show a different point of view.

Now, with their new project, Goals for Change, supported by La Caixa Foundation and Canon Spain, the storytelling duties are handed over to the team. Guided by Ofelia and Javier, who are educators in the Canon Young People Programme, in collaboration with Pablo Tosco, they were given a range of Canon cameras as well as use of our professional print services for an exhibition of their work. “This is such a valuable community-focused project. We wanted to get involved as soon as we heard about it.”, says Communications Director for Canon Spain and Portugal, Pilar González. “Ofelia, Javier and Pablo are all wonderful educators. Their focus is not just on taking perfect pictures, but telling stories and bringing experiences, hopes and dreams to life. This was a gift to the players of FC Darna, who had so much to share.”

Like football, the young men found the process to be cathartic. It allowed them to think deeply about their journey, their sense of place, family and how the future might look. Some works are so personal that they surprised even Ofelia. “In the beginning you don’t understand them,” she says. “For example, there is a photo of a sofa. I asked, ‘why have you just photographed your room?’ He replied, ‘No one who hasn’t been on the street, who has not suffered what we have suffered, can know the importance of having your own home’.” This young man, Hamza Marsou, is now 22. He arrived in Spain alone at the age of 13, living in squats for several years until he was able to find a place of his own.

These experiences take on a different complexion when you put them in the context of a young person – a child – who is alone and who has taken a leap of faith so profound, to find a better future. The simplicity of images of home and new friends raises questions: what does ‘home’ mean, when you have left everything behind? Who can you call family in a place that misunderstands or even fears you?

Holding the Goals for Change exhibition was an opportunity to ask these questions and, in the process, bring a sense of humanity to a word which is increasingly dehumanised – migrants. The young players welcomed visitors to the first exhibition of Goals for Change at Nau Bostik Barcelona, where their images were printed at scale on Canon Arizona and Colorado printers, then curated with care. The professional presentation was key in encouraging the players to speak frankly and without fear to visitors and the press about their images and experiences. “It was a privilege to be able to help them share their strong and hopeful messages with a wider audience and a real pleasure to get to see them telling their stories first hand,” says Pilar. It’s such an important and inspiring project.”

Ofelia, Javier and Pablo will be taking their multimedia exhibition on tour around Spain in the subsequent months. It has already received widespread praise and press coverage for bringing the story of the club to new audiences – both in Spain and much further afield, but this is just the first part - they want to add the stories of many more similar clubs. "This project is an opportunity for people to know what it's like to be an immigrant, to be from outside," says team captain Soufiane El Ahmadi, speaking to Spain’s El Pais.

They smilingly refer to their coach, Sergi Llamas, as a father figure and it is a given that they are a family. After all, FC Darna has its name for a reason. It is a place of safety and communion for these young men at a time which is far from easy. Or, to put it in the words of young player Zakaria Ezzuvyn: “Football is love, it comes from your soul.”=

Learn more about Goals for Change and how Canon empowers the next generation.