A man who fled the war in Sudan as a 14-year-old and risked his life to reach Britain has revealed how joining a football team made up of fellow migrants has brought stability to his life.
Ussri Badawi, now 21, reached the UK in 2018 after spending time in countries including Libya, Italy and France.
He learnt English through Unicef in 2012 and endured hard times before getting to the UK, repeatedly risking his life trying to enter the country under lorries, as he had heard it was “the safest” country and was multicultural.
“The first time I tried to get to the UK through France was under a lorry. You just go under the lorry and wait for your chance,” he said.
“Sometimes you don’t know where this lorry is going. You are sitting between the wheels and it is so dangerous … but if you go near the wheels, the driver might not check properly.”
Last year, a 16-year-old Sudanese boy died while trying to board a UK-bound lorry.
Mr Badawi said he finally reached the UK after being transported in a lorry by a friend for 10 to 11 hours when he was 17, after attempting to get to the UK from France for three years.
In an interview with the PA news agency, Mr Badawi said that he has “faced even more dangerous situations” which spurred him on to try to rebuild his life in the UK, where he found solace in Changing Lives FC — a football team made up of refugees and migrants.
“I just came across to train because I didn’t know of any football teams that I could train with, and I have been here for three years now,” he said.
“The team really means a lot because it has multicultural players from different countries.”
He said because their English is not perfect they have found ways to communicate with each other, which might not have happened with other teams. “It makes you think you could become a professional footballer,” he said.
The team play in division two in Essex's Harlow District League, which has 11 teams, and they train every Thursday for one and a half hours.
“I have a video and I still watch it all the time,” Mr Badawi said, reflecting fondly on a match in which he scored a goal.
“It was really nice hearing people celebrating and cheering for us — it was a good feeling.”
Dave Simmons, 27, from Harlow, is the team’s coach. He said that when he met the “very tall” player who was “built like a machine,” he knew he would be the perfect fit for the team.
“He’s got a great smile and he’s willing to learn, which is the most important thing as a player,” he said.
“You want a player who wants to listen and who wants to do better, and Ussri’s smile is very contagious and he helps and supports the whole team.
“It is an honour to coach a team like Changing Lives, with so many young people from different countries.
“Football can be taught in so many languages just because of the movements, actions and demonstrations that you do, and with the World Cup coming up and the women’s Euros having taken place, it gets young boys and girls to dream about being professional footballers.
“Hopefully, a few of the players I’ve got on my team can one day become professional footballers.”
The team will be featured in a three-part series called Migrants United, produced by LOUD productions.
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The Details
Article 15
Produced by: Carnival Cinemas, Zee Studios
Directed by: Anubhav Sinha
Starring: Ayushmann Khurrana, Kumud Mishra, Manoj Pahwa, Sayani Gupta, Zeeshan Ayyub
Our rating: 4/5
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The specs
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AUSTRALIA SQUAD
Tim Paine (captain), Sean Abbott, Pat Cummins, Cameron Green, Marcus Harris, Josh Hazlewood, Travis Head, Moises Henriques, Marnus Labuschagne, Nathan Lyon, Michael Neser, James Pattinson, Will Pucovski, Steve Smith, Mitchell Starc, Mitchell Swepson, Matthew Wade, David Warner
BULKWHIZ PROFILE
Date started: February 2017
Founders: Amira Rashad (CEO), Yusuf Saber (CTO), Mahmoud Sayedahmed (adviser), Reda Bouraoui (adviser)
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: E-commerce
Size: 50 employees
Funding: approximately $6m
Investors: Beco Capital, Enabling Future and Wain in the UAE; China's MSA Capital; 500 Startups; Faith Capital and Savour Ventures in Kuwait
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
It Was Just an Accident
Director: Jafar Panahi
Stars: Vahid Mobasseri, Mariam Afshari, Ebrahim Azizi, Hadis Pakbaten, Majid Panahi, Mohamad Ali Elyasmehr
Rating: 4/5
FFP EXPLAINED
What is Financial Fair Play?
Introduced in 2011 by Uefa, European football’s governing body, it demands that clubs live within their means. Chiefly, spend within their income and not make substantial losses.
What the rules dictate?
The second phase of its implementation limits losses to €30 million (Dh136m) over three seasons. Extra expenditure is permitted for investment in sustainable areas (youth academies, stadium development, etc). Money provided by owners is not viewed as income. Revenue from “related parties” to those owners is assessed by Uefa's “financial control body” to be sure it is a fair value, or in line with market prices.
What are the penalties?
There are a number of punishments, including fines, a loss of prize money or having to reduce squad size for European competition – as happened to PSG in 2014. There is even the threat of a competition ban, which could in theory lead to PSG’s suspension from the Uefa Champions League.
Key facilities
- Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
- Premier League-standard football pitch
- 400m Olympic running track
- NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
- 600-seat auditorium
- Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
- An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
- Specialist robotics and science laboratories
- AR and VR-enabled learning centres
- Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
New schools in Dubai
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Pharaoh's curse
British aristocrat Lord Carnarvon, who funded the expedition to find the Tutankhamun tomb, died in a Cairo hotel four months after the crypt was opened.
He had been in poor health for many years after a car crash, and a mosquito bite made worse by a shaving cut led to blood poisoning and pneumonia.
Reports at the time said Lord Carnarvon suffered from “pain as the inflammation affected the nasal passages and eyes”.
Decades later, scientists contended he had died of aspergillosis after inhaling spores of the fungus aspergillus in the tomb, which can lie dormant for months. The fact several others who entered were also found dead withiin a short time led to the myth of the curse.
What's in the deal?
Agreement aims to boost trade by £25.5bn a year in the long run, compared with a total of £42.6bn in 2024
India will slash levies on medical devices, machinery, cosmetics, soft drinks and lamb.
India will also cut automotive tariffs to 10% under a quota from over 100% currently.
Indian employees in the UK will receive three years exemption from social security payments
India expects 99% of exports to benefit from zero duty, raising opportunities for textiles, marine products, footwear and jewellery
Sole survivors
- Cecelia Crocker was on board Northwest Airlines Flight 255 in 1987 when it crashed in Detroit, killing 154 people, including her parents and brother. The plane had hit a light pole on take off
- George Lamson Jr, from Minnesota, was on a Galaxy Airlines flight that crashed in Reno in 1985, killing 68 people. His entire seat was launched out of the plane
- Bahia Bakari, then 12, survived when a Yemenia Airways flight crashed near the Comoros in 2009, killing 152. She was found clinging to wreckage after floating in the ocean for 13 hours.
- Jim Polehinke was the co-pilot and sole survivor of a 2006 Comair flight that crashed in Lexington, Kentucky, killing 49.
The Ashes
Results
First Test, Brisbane: Australia won by 10 wickets
Second Test, Adelaide: Australia won by 120 runs
Third Test, Perth: Australia won by an innings and 41 runs
Fourth Test: Melbourne: Drawn
Fifth Test: Australia won by an innings and 123 runs
Electric scooters: some rules to remember
- Riders must be 14-years-old or over
- Wear a protective helmet
- Park the electric scooter in designated parking lots (if any)
- Do not leave electric scooter in locations that obstruct traffic or pedestrians
- Solo riders only, no passengers allowed
- Do not drive outside designated lanes
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MATCH INFO
Maratha Arabians 107-8 (10 ovs)
Lyth 21, Lynn 20, McClenaghan 20 no
Qalandars 60-4 (10 ovs)
Malan 32 no, McClenaghan 2-9
Maratha Arabians win by 47 runs
