A classless game
It’s always exciting to listen to stories of older folks whose lives were eventful, especially if it’s about overcoming obstacles that are beyond their own strength and control.
Take the story of Craig Hepburn. According to a recent News24 article, his love for football dared him to challenge authority and his own willpower during South Africa’s apartheid era.
“I had to drive into Soweto and train in Orlando Stadium and drive back out and put my army uniform and my rifle on and go back in,”
But now, that love has led him to establish the football academy African Brothers in Cape Town. He believes the game belongs to the people and has therefore opened up the academy to everyone from street children and refugees to middle-class suburbanites and policemen.
For Hepburn, football is classless; a unifying phenomenon, which is something he might have learnt from his experiences during apartheid.
To read the entire News24 article "Soccer for the people", click here.
To view the News24 video "Changing the face of SA soccer" about Hepburn’s academy click play video.