Paul Fitzpatrick, Scottish FA football Diversity & Inclusion co-ordinator, said:
"This was a fantastic celebration of the diverse communities across Scotland who are playing and looking to progress in the game."
“Football has a power to bring people together and it was fantastic to see so many people here today sharing their love of the national sport.”
“We hope that those involved continue to develop themselves and their clubs to progress in any pathway they feel they want to follow. The project can help them do that, so they’re willingness to stay involved is key.”
The SFA operate a Football Equality project which aims to use football activities to help support and empower ethnic minority and diverse communities. Equality Officers work to increase accessibility and increasing the knowledge of and participation in grassroots football for people from ethnic minority backgrounds.
In April 2016 the SFA unveiled a new Diversity & Inclusion strategy with support from the Scottish Government. This has enabled a dedicated team of Football Equity Officers to work on supporting clubs and communities in implementing the strategy.
The SFA recently highlighted projects in the North Lanarkshire region, east of Glasgow, that also show how football in Scotland is being used as a tool for social change. Through UEFA’s Captains of Change programme, multicultural communities were involved in football-based projects that also offered workshops in cultural awareness. These projects brought together members of communities from diverse ethnic and social backgrounds.
This article was originally published on sportanddev.org