Women’s football talent contest with Dakar Sacré Coeur

Context 

In Senegal, female football is yet to be accepted across the board culturally, as a minority of women are actively involved in the local ecosystem. Established in 2017, DSC’s professional women’s team (Dakar Sacrées Queens) was crowned Senegalese champions in 2021 and represented Senegal in the first edition of the Women’s Champions League organised by the African Football Confederation.

Based on these first achievements, DSC wishes to develop this approach further by reinforcing its collaboration with the Dakar Sacrées Queens team while strengthening the high-level aspect with the setting up of a 100% female training structure.

This operation will bring together a total of between 1,500 and 2,000 young girls from the Dakar region without social discrimination. Beyond the purely technical aspects related to the detection of talent, Dakar Sacré Coeur wishes to take advantage of this mass event to raise awareness among all candidates on important themes (citizenship, female entrepreneurship and women empowerment).

Objectives

• Take charge of 30 young girls aged between 12 and 18 years old within a sport-study type training system
• Reach 1,800 young girls during selection days and raise their awareness of citizenship, female entrepreneurship and women’s empowerment
• Take charge of 30 selected female players and support them in a high-level curriculum
• Integrate the best players into a Senegalese or French professional team

 Activities

• Organisation of talent spotting days combined with awareness campaigns on citizenship and female entrepreneurship
• Promotion of the event and recruitment of young talent
• 3 weekly training sessions and 1 simulation match
• Refresher courses at Collège Sacré-Cœur
• Setting up leisure activities to promote interculturality and personal development

Impacts

• Improving the physical and psychological health of young women through football
• Promoting a plural education with joint professional perspectives
• Integrating around 30 female players into the professional team

Photo credit: Dakar Sacré Cœur