Trials for the 2009 Homeless World Cup Team

The 2009 trials for the upcoming Homeless World Cup are now complete.  At a camp outside of Cape Town, roughly 25 guys from Cape Town and Knysna came together to compete for the 8 slots in the 2009 team. This year, the Homeless World Cup will take place in Milan, Italy in September.

Physical training began early in the morning and then trial matches began mid-afternoon. Along the beach, it was a picturesque event with Table Mountain also towering in the distance!

So far, it looks like Martin Afrika will be on the 2009 team.  It remains uncertain whether or not he will be able to obtain legal identification papers allowing him to apply for his passport.  His spirits seemed high at the trials and we are all hoping that everything will line up for him this year.

As far as filming goes, our time here in South Africa is almost complete.  A few more days before returning to New York will give us our final footage from this leg of the journey and we look forward to piecing together all the amazing elements of this story to complete the film.  It promises to be an exciting season ahead for South African Homeless Street Soccer as well as for StreetBall, the film.  Stay tuned—many more exciting stories to come!