Mingalarbar Mae Sot League is Back

Opening Ceremony and Inclusion Festival kicks off the Mingalarbar Mae Sot League 4.0

They say if you do something for more than three years in a row, you have established a tradition. On Saturday, November 16 2019, we finally kicked off the 4th edition of the Mingalarbar Mae Sot League. So now definitely can call the annual Mingalarbar Mae Sot League a tradition in the migrant communities in Mae Sot.  

This year we are very happy to welcome back some schools, but also to say Mingalarbar and welcome to a couple of new schools. Aye Yone Thit, Home School  and Chicken School are participating in a PlayOnside tournament for the first time, and for PlayOnside it is amazing to see the anticipation, hope and eagerness in the eyes of the kids when they walk onto the field for the first time. Last tournament we experimented with a new category, Mini Girls, and it was a great success playing four-aside without a goalkeeper. We will continue with the Mini Girls category also for this upcoming tournament. Another addition is the Micro Boys, boys aged between 9-10. Previously they had played in the Small Boys category, but the age difference between the oldest and youngest  made it very difficult for the youngest boys. We are excited about the small adjustments we have made, and look forward to ten weeks of fun.

Football is of course about competition, but not only that. We want to play down the competitive part, and in this aspect the opening ceremony plays an important role. A full day of different fun-games and activities are planned, and the children are mixed both age-wise, gender-wise and school-wise.

By providing a non-competitive activity-based start of the tournament, new friendships are built from day one. The day was filled with laughter and smiles, and around 600 children went home tired, but happy. The new schools were off to a soft start, and are eagerly anticipating round one starting November 23rd.

The kids are excited, and for sure PlayOnside is excited as well. 

Let the show begin!

PlayOnside is always fighting for equality between the genders. Therefore we are very happy that 36 % of the teams participating are girls team
Gender Equality
67 teams from 22 different Migrant Learning Centers will meet every week for a safe, fun and inclusive competition.
Social Inclusion
All different Burmese ethnic groups are represented in the tournament, building friendships across different backgrounds and status.
Friendship
Football is about teamplay, fair play and respect. But also about learning to accept defeat and trying the very best. All this we learn through the Life Skills program
Life Skills

Highlights from the opening weekend.

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