BiH qualifies for the second stage of the Homeless World Cup

With yesterday's two victories in Group E against Finland with a score of 7:1 and Sweden 6:0, our national team has formally secured a place in the second group stage of the 15th World Cup for the homeless, which is being held in Oslo from August 29 to September 6, reports Patria agency.

Earlier, the BiH national team, within the same group, defeated Denmark 6:4, Austria 5:4, and Poland 5:4 after penalties (regular time 4:4). According to the rules of the championship, a victory in regular time is worth 3 points, a victory in penalties is worth 2 points, while the loser in penalties gets 1 point.

Thus, BiH took first place in its group with 14 points, Austria is second with 10 points, and Denmark is third with 9 points. A total of 24 national teams from around the world qualified for the second group stage with our team. Meanwhile, 24 lower-ranked national teams that did not qualify for the second group stage will play for rankings from 25th to 48th place.

- Besides the victories, our guys were especially pleased with the presence of our people at their matches. Considering the background of this national team and the project, it is not surprising how much that support means. It is also a recognition for the players that they are equal members of our society, worthy of attention, praise, and representing BiH. Sport is truly a powerful tool for positive change in people's lives. We at MFS-EMMAUS recognized it as such, and through this project, we nurture its positive values and help people from the margins of society to be its equal members. We are not alone in all of this, and we are immensely grateful to those who help us - said Elmedin Škreb, coach of the BiH national team at this year's Futsal World Cup for the homeless in Norway.

This year, BiH is represented at the World Cup by Nermin Salkanović, Vjeko Matuh, Mevludin Osmanović, Ademir Bajrić, Almir Zulić, Muhamed Golub, Kenan Žunić, Ado Mustafić, led by coach Elmedin Škreb, assistant Vedad Kovačević, and volunteer Haris Okanović.

The players, in fact, participants in the project, are young people from socially vulnerable and marginalized groups of our society, including the homeless, displaced persons, children without parental care, residents housed in collective and refugee settlements, as well as members of minorities. A greater result than the competition, which is the ultimate goal of the project, are the positive experiences and encounters that have changed the lives of the players, making them feel proud as representatives and ambassadors of their country.

The association "International Forum of Solidarity-EMMAUS" (MFS-EMMAUS) from Doboj Istok, as a partner of the "Homeless World Cup" (HWC) organization from Scotland and the implementer of the project "Futsal National Team of the Homeless of BiH", has been actively working on the realization of this project since September 2011.

From then until today, the national team of the homeless of BiH has participated in five World Cups (Mexico 2012, Poland 2013, Chile 2014, Netherlands 2015, and Scotland 2016), from which the greatest success was the title of world vice-champion won at the championship in Chile.

For the national team's trip this year, the greatest assistance to the project was provided by BiH national football player Muhamed Bešić, who paid for the plane tickets for the entire team to travel to Oslo, while the preparations, documentation processing for the players, and procurement of sports equipment were supported by the Mayor of Doboj, Obren Petrović, and the Head of Gračanica, Nusret Helić, the Football Association of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the municipality of Doboj Istok, the Football Association of Tuzla Canton, and the Tesanj water brand "OAZA".