The Rainbow Team
The Rainbow Team

The Rainbow Team – Göteborgsposten

THE RAINBOW TEAM

Göteborgsposten, July 23th

The Rainbow Team from South Africa, which represents all of Cape Town, plays at the Gothia Cup for the second time. “It is a huge honour”.

GOTHENBURG The Rainbow Team is a reflection of the diversity of both the Gothia Cup as well as its home town Cape Town. This South African team gives young people from completely different backgrounds a chance to experience the world together through soccer. “To me personally it is a huge honour and it makes me so very happy to be part of this,” says coach Anees Abbas.

Travel organiser Pernilla Landstedt has been living in Cape Town for 20 years. Two years ago, her son Jojo got the idea during a holiday to Gothenburg that he would love to play in the Gothia Cup. His mum liked the idea and just a couple of months later Pernilla and coach Anees Abbas with had created the Rainbow Team together with a handful of sponsors.

The aim of the team is that young boys from all walks of life: social class, religion and backgrounds should be able to meet and discover the world together through soccer.

Nine new players

This is the Rainbow Team’s second season at the Gothia Cup. This time with nine new Rainbow players.

“It is amazing to see how great friends these boys have become. There is an unbelievable team spirit and it doesn’t matter if you live in a shack, which ethnic or religious background you belong to, Pernilla Landstedt explains.

Supported by sponsors

Eight out of the team’s 15 players are sponsored while the remaining players pay the trip themselves.  “The boys are selected through interviews and come from five different clubs in Cape Town. In one way it is a “national” team, but our focus in the selection process has been diversity over soccer skills,” Coach Abbas explains.

“You can say that this team has changed my life. It is an amazing experience. Even though the soccer doesn’t always go your way, it is a victory in itself that these boys get the chance to come out and see the world and have fun together,” says Anees Abbas.

Pernilla Landstedt explains that every player has had to learn and understand the rules for how someone who represents the Rainbow Team must behave. “But that hasn’t been any problem,” she says.

After having won their group in the Boys 14 class, the team lost their match in the next round. Team captain Sihle Songanga is not particularly disappointed, though: “We have made a lot of progress compared to last year, and it has been a fantastic experience, even though we of course would have preferred to have played more,” he says. He also explains what makes the Rainbow Team so special: “We have an amazing team spirit. Everybody is friends with everybody,” he thinks.

He also tells about the dream of coming back next year and perhaps one day play as a professional in Europe.

“This is such a cool place. I love it here,” he says.