Have you ever had the feeling of an
overwhelming desire to return to a festival just after you have left the scene?
Well, if your answer is not, it probably means that you haven’t found your
ideal festival yet. Now, after the Antiracist World Cup /Mondiali Antirazzisti/
which took place in the vicinity of Castelfranco Emilia in Emilia Romagna
region, I can definitely say I have already found mine, even if its musical profile
does not entirely match with my taste. 
For the first sight, the Antiracist World Cup might
seem to be an international sport event, however it’s much more than it, as it also
includes a free music festival. For a
few amazing days, sport lovers -players and fans all together- from all over
the world gather in the name of antiracism, antifascism and antisexism in order
to share this unique experience. While some kind of weird mixed smell of
football fan’s pyrotechnics and weed spreads all over the camp’s area, people
of diverse origin interact in different ways. They play numerous kinds of games,
they sing, they drink, they dance and...you know the rest. From time to time
the ultras start chanting the well-known rhythms of „Siamo tutti antifascisti”
/We are all antifascists/ after what, some volunteer DJ’s at the bar put on the
anthem of Italian partisans, the famous „Bella Ciao”. And in fact, at the
Mondiali Antirazzisti, you have a feeling that you are surrounded by a huge
group of partisans who did not put down their weapons to continue fighting for
a world without fascism and racial hatred. Not surprisingly, leftist ideas
shape the attitude of this event where the principle of equality prevails. Thanks
to all of its characteristics, the Antiracist World Cup does not align with other
regular sport events. As a matter of
fact, it’s a monumental protest against all form of social discrimination,
could it be on the basis of race, sexual orientation, gender.
As the profile of our foundation in
Milan and the message of the Antiracist World Cup have many things in common,
we decided to offer our volunteer work at the event. Sadly, the organizers (Unione
Italiana Sport per Tutti and Progetto Ultra with the support of FARE network)
have to cope with financial difficulties to realize this wonder, therefore they
highly rely on volunteers in some fields of the organization and realization. Although
not having much experience in the kitchen work, we contributed to the daily
tasks of the main restaurant’s staff. As a great pleasure, we could work with
four amazing girls, Giulia, Maisha, Sharon and Nicole who were always ready to
smile, even during the hardest periods. Feeding more thousand participants was
not an easy task, but at least I will always remember the Italian name of the
tray: vassoio.
And what did we do apart from
assisting the kitchen staff in their work?
Not surprisingly football, football and football (in case I did not
oversleep) and all the other stuff what a fellow would do who goes to
festivals. Beside the triangle of work, football and joy I also had the chance
to listen to the words of Cécile Kyenge Kashetu, the first black minister of
the Italian Republic who contributed to the debate in the topic of sport and
citizenship. In this way, I not just gained memorable moments, but also extra
knowledge on the field of the social aspects of sport that for some time past constitutes
the centre of my interest.
Speaking
for myself, this event turned out to be one of my greatest experiences so far.
Hopefully this nice memory will provide me energy for the remaining days of the
summer. If I have the chance, I will definitely return, no matter if I will
work as a volunteer or participate as the leader of a future champion team. Thank
you for all!
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