Hafiz is 22. Hafiz was involved with Crossworld when it was first started in 2006, and played for the Football Club Project team during its first season. Hafiz is no longer involved on a week-to-week basis with Crossworld due to study and work commitments, but he often joins Crossworld teams for small tournaments and comes to support the team whenever he can.
Hafiz had never really played football seriously before he came to the UK. In his country, ‘no-one coached us or taught us key football skills, teamwork, and communication’ and he credits Crossworld with having taught him these things. Not only has Crossworld helped Hafiz become a better footballer, but has also had a profound effect on his life away from football.
‘Crossworld has helped me more than anything else in my life, from every angle it has helped’, he says. Hafiz thinks that skills like teamwork and communication, which he learned at Crossworld, are vital in every walk of life. As a result of his time with Crossworld, Hafiz has been able to demonstrate concrete examples of his skills when interviewing for jobs or when applying for a university course. Now a successful and ambitious student at one of London’s top universities, Hafiz says, ‘Crossworld changed my life’