Reflections from the Field: Challenges in Managing Agendas and Expectations around Football for Peace in Israel

Abstract

Football 4 Peace (F4P) is a Sport for Development and Peace (SDP) project in Israel that has stood the test of time and found ways of evolving, adapting and reinventing itself in one of the most culturally diverse1 and politically divided contexts in the world. Since 2001, when it was established, F4P has lived through the Second Intifada, Israel’s war with Lebanon, the election of Hamas in Palestine, the 2006 Israel-Gaza conflict, changes in Government spanning the political spectrum, and the Arab Spring. By signposting these events we offer a perspective on the transcending political backdrop to the F4P intervention and give an insight into the scale of the challenges being undertaken and the uncertainty that surrounded every dimension of the project. Knowledge of that context is critical to understanding the nature of a SDP intervention (Sugden, 2006; Coalter, 2007); we provide that in the next section. The chapter then offers some experiential insights into the organisation, application and development of the project. These observations are divided into sections that relate to performance indicators for such interventions; do the actors have shared values and goals? Is there discernible impact at the grassroots level? Are local people empowered and is the programme sustainable? Are the practices ethical? Is the programme evaluation robust? Finally, we provide some examples of where lessons have been learned, highlighting positive and negative aspects, in order to offer some points that may be taken into account and applied in other SDP contexts, each offering their own complex mix of challenges and opportunities.