Armani

Excerpts from a message by Red, White and Sky Blues:

The West African nation of Sierra Leone suffered through a civil war that lasted more than a decade and claimed at least 50,000 lives. The current life expectancy in the country is just 38 years for men and 43 years for women. Devastation, poverty and hunger have all reigned supreme in recent years. Through the game of soccer, however, Armani, a fervent Manchester City supporter is attempting to make a difference. In his war-ravaged and impoverished homeland, Armani has somehow organized both a supporters’ club and a squad of players that competes against similar teams from other villages. The dire circumstances of the recent past in Sierra Leone have made his accomplishments remarkable.

Our supporters’ club is getting involved to hopefully bolster the entire soccer community there. It is our sincere intention to assist Armani and all of the soccer players of Sierra Leone through the collection of used equipment. We hope you will similarly encourage your players, coaches, parents, family members, administrators, fans and friends to donate their old soccer gear to the impoverished players of Sierra Leone. We ask you to spread the word about this project to newspapers, magazines, radio stations and web sites... to collect old uniforms, used cleats, balls and all other soccer-related materials for the players in West Africa... to get involved as members of the world soccer community.

Excerpts from Armani's statement:

We lack basic soccer equipment and it is very hard in the second poorest country in the world to set up a team. I have a budget of $2 for 24 players and that comes out of my own pocket. Our country has gone through twelve years of the most brutal civil war in the world in which people’s limbs were amputated and many lost their loved ones. It is only through soccer that we have been able to move forward to try to forget about the past. We look forward to hearing from you.

Thank you.