BLOEMFONTEIN, South Africa – Today France and South Africa meet in this World Cup host city for a key match that may decide who proceeds to the next round of the competition. But a group of French fans are focused more on the soccer action in townships than those being broadcast on television.

A French team from Athletes in Action is ministering to youth in the townships of Bloemfontein through soccer camps.

PRETORIA, South Africa — Suicide. Grief. Abuse. These are some of the issues faced by the women on the South African national soccer teams. About 27 female soccer players from Athletes In Action (AIA) came from the United States and Canada to train with and minister to over 30 members of the South African teams — Banyana Banyana (the national team), Betswana (the Under 20 team), and Betwana Betwana (the Under 17 team).

A large part the training camp was spent on drills, skill building and simulation matches, while relationship building and group sessions aided in the women’s emotional growth.

During the sessions, some South African players opened up about their social and familial exploitation, such as rape and lesbianism, which they experience on a regular basis in their living situations.

A young Indian woman walks in the door of the church and immediately puts her Bible on the floor, staking out a spot near the front.  Chitta Thakur* explains that both the men’s and women’s side of the church fills up pretty fast. So, it’s best to come early just to make sure you have [...]

Agni* is 12-year-old boy who is innovative and musically gifted but sadly also illiterate. His mother is a housewife, his father an auto rickshaw driver. A poor family, they live in a small, single-room home in the middle of a slum. Piles of trash border the slum where women dig deep, hoping to find something [...]