Football camps offer Ukrainian children a week of friendship and play

More than 100 Ukrainian children enjoyed football, friendship and new experiences recently through a series of camps supported by UEFA and organised in cooperation with the football associations of Ukraine, Romania and Slovakia.

Held in Romanian capital Bucharest and the Slovakian city of Poprad, the week-long camps welcomed girls and boys from across Ukraine, many of them from regions directly affected by the ongoing conflict.

Allowing children to be children

While football was at the heart of the programme, the camps offered the children much more than activities on the pitch. They provided a safe and supportive environment in which participants could discover new places, meet new friends and enjoy the simple freedom of playing together.

For the children, it was also an opportunity to spend a peaceful week away from the pressures of everyday life and regain a sense of routine and normality. Training sessions, matches and shared activities helped create new friendships, build confidence and ensure that every participant felt part of the team.

“Children don’t get a second childhood – all the time they have is now. Therefore, our ultimate goal is to make sure they enjoy this time,” said Olena Balbek UAF director of strategic development and sustainability. “We are grateful to UEFA and to our friends at the football associations of Romania and Slovakia for their help in organising the camps. The children really enjoyed their experience!”

The initiative was made possible through close cooperation between the Ukrainian Association of Football (UAF) and its counterparts in Romania and Slovakia, whose staff helped welcome the children and organise the camps.

"We are happy that the Ukrainian children were able to spend a week in the training centre of the Romanian national football team and enjoy our hospitality,” explained Florin Șari, FRF public policy and football social responsibility manager. “We tried, additionally to the football programme, to provide them opportunities to share experience with Romanian children of their age and also to learn about the recent history of the city and its landmarks.”

Ukrainian children had the chance to make friends at the Slovakia summer camp

Europe working together to help those in need

The collaboration demonstrated how European football’s network of national associations can work together to support communities in difficult circumstances. By sharing resources, facilities and expertise, the associations created an experience centred on the children’s well-being and enjoyment.

"We believe that football has the power to bring people together and make a positive difference, especially in difficult times, and welcoming Ukrainian children to Slovakia was about much more than football," said SFZ social and environmental sustainability manager, Martin Ivanko. "We wanted to create a safe and friendly environment where they could simply enjoy being children, make new friends and experience moments of happiness away from the challenges they face at home. Seeing their smiles and enthusiasm reminded us why initiatives like this matter.

Romania hosted a girls camp for Ukrainian children

"We are grateful to UEFA for its support and to the UAF for choosing Slovakia as one of the host countries and for the excellent cooperation throughout the project. We hope to continue working together on similar initiatives in the future."

The camps also underlined sport’s wider social value. Football provides more than physical activity: it offers structure, belonging and a common language through which children can connect, regardless of their background or circumstances.

For the Ukrainian children who travelled to Slovakia and Romania, that meant a week in which the focus could simply be on playing, learning and having fun.