FC Seoul Youth Soccer School Recruits 93 Children from Multicultural and Foreign Resident Families... Operating 13 Stadiums

Application Open via City Multicultural Family Homepage
Recruitment for 'Foreign Resident Community Cultural Event Support Project'... Up to 5 Million KRW Support

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Cheol-young] The Seoul Metropolitan Government announced on the 25th that it will recruit 93 children aged 5 to 12 from multicultural families residing in Seoul to participate in this year’s ‘FC Seoul Youth Soccer School.’ Education will be conducted once a week (50 or 80 minutes per session) at 13 district venues until the end of November.

Since 2013, Seoul and FC Seoul have operated the ‘Youth Soccer School for Children from Multicultural and General Families’ as a public-private partnership project to support the healthy growth of multicultural families and promote social integration. Marking its 10th year this year, the FC Seoul Multicultural Soccer School not only helps children from multicultural families adapt healthily to Korean society through soccer but also serves as a program where children from various countries understand and coexist with each other. So far, 2,200 children from multicultural families have participated.

Multicultural families wishing to participate in the soccer school can apply after registering as members on the Seoul Multicultural Family website ‘Hanultari.’ After completing the application on the website, proof documents must be submitted to the city official’s email within one week. Selected children will be contacted individually by FC Seoul to provide detailed schedules.

Meanwhile, Seoul is also calling for applications for the ‘2022 Foreign Resident Community Cultural Event Support Project’ to activate community activities and cultural events for foreign residents while providing citizens with opportunities to experience diverse world cultures. The total project budget is 30 million KRW, and selected events will be supported with up to 5 million KRW.

The support target includes cultural exchange events such as music, sports, food, clothing, exhibitions, and competitions held by foreign resident communities and private organizations from June to November 2022, open to both foreign and Korean residents. In particular, starting this year, the city plans to avoid one-time events that simply introduce folk or traditional events of countries of origin and actively discover new and beneficial cultural events such as foreign resident film festivals and international student cultural academic conferences. The goal is to create a communication space where general citizens can also enjoy and freely participate.

Kim Seon-soon, Director of the Seoul Metropolitan Government’s Women and Family Policy Office, said, “Seoul and FC Seoul have been operating a soccer school for children from multicultural families for 10 years to support their healthy growth and social integration. Through support for sports activities and cultural exchange, we will enhance understanding of world cultures and community spirit, thereby raising Seoul’s status as an international city.”