POSTED: Wednesday February 10th 2010
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Alive & Kicking steal a march on FIFA to deliver legacy for Africa

Press Release: London, 8 February 2010 – Alive & Kicking named third in Business Week’s list of ‘25 Products That Might Just Change The World’, as attention focuses on long-term legacy of the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

Press Release: London, 8 February 2010 - Alive & Kicking named third in Business Week’s list of ‘25 Products That Might Just Change The World’, as attention focuses on long-term legacy of the 2010 FIFA World Cup.

With Africa hosting the World Cup for the first time this year, many questions are being posed about how FIFA plans to use the tournament as a force for progress and change in a continent ravaged by poverty and disease. The game’s governing body has developed a legacy programme designed to capitalise on the investment in and the attention on South Africa this year.

However, with the majority of FIFA’s focus currently on organising a successful tournament in potentially difficult circumstances, the World Cup’s legacy is understandably a low-priority. This has paved the way for other organisations to leverage the footballing world’s focus on Africa for a good cause.

For example, Alive & Kicking (www.aliveandkicking.org.uk) is a UK-based social enterprise that has setup stitching factories in Kenya and Zambia, where leather footballs are made for free distribution to underprivileged African children. The factories have created hundreds of jobs in areas of high unemployment and have given thousands of footballs - branded with HIV/AIDS awareness messages - to children who otherwise would be playing with homemade balls.

Recently, Alive & Kicking was named third in Business Week’s list of ‘25 Products That Might Just Change The World’. “This was an unexpected but very welcome accolade,” says Alive & Kicking Director Will Prochaska. “With minimal resources we have built a sustainable enterprise that is making a tangible difference to thousands of people in sub-Saharan Africa.”

Mr Prochaska believes FIFA has a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to make a positive, substantive and impactful difference in the continent. “2010 is a huge year for Africa,” he says. “The success of our initiatives there prove that football can have a transformative impact on some of the world’s poorest communities. With their influence and resources, I hope FIFA grasps its unique opportunity to make a difference..”

For further information, photos, interviews and case studies, please contact:

Keegan Wilson
t: +44 (0) 20 3393 8277
m: +44 (0) 7939 285 972
e: keegan@ubiquitycomms.com

Editors’ notes

Alive & Kicking is a social enterprise that manufactures hand stitched sports balls in sub-Saharan Africa in order to provide balls for children, jobs for previously unemployed adults, and health awareness for young people through sport. Established in 2004 Alive & Kicking operates factories in Kenya and Zambia employing over 150 people. 250,000 balls have been distributed to children across Africa, and 40,000 children have been targeted by Alive & Kicking’s HIV/AIDS campaign.

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Keywords · FIFA World Cup · Sepp Blatter · Africa · South Africa 2010

Name: Keegan Wilson
Organization: Substance PR and Ubiquity Comms
Email:
Phone: 02380 557373
URL: www.substancepr.com

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