Rivals on the pitch, but never enemies! FC Bayern and Inter Milan went up against each other in the quarter-finals of the Champions League, but off the pitch they pursued a shared goal: helping children who are faced with particularly difficult life circumstances. After all, football doesn't divide – it brings people together.
In the run-up to the first leg in Munich, representatives of Inter Campus, a social project run by the Milan club, took part in a training session that FC Bayern had organised together with 'buntkicktgut' – an initiative that brings together children from socially disadvantaged backgrounds through football. The session was supported by FC Bayern legends Diego Contento, Bernd Dreher and Hans Pflügler, who passed on their experience and gave the young participants some valuable input to take away with them.
On the day of the return leg, FC Bayern youth coaches along with Inter Campus went to the Fondazione Maria Letizia Verga paediatric ward in Milan, visiting young patients who are battling leukaemia and participating in the ‘Sport Therapy’ project. In the afternoon, they took part in another Inter Campus project, which is run in cooperation with ‘Play helps a better healing’ – a training session for children who have overcome cancer.
Also there were FC Bayern legend Roy Makaay and Inter vice-president Javier Zanetti, who handed out presents to the children and provided them with unforgettable moments. Makaay told the children: "The Champions League game tonight is important, but the most important game is being
The cooperation between FC Bayern and Inter Milan demonstrates impressively the power that football has – particularly when it comes to conveying hope, joy and cohesion. The exchange of ideas, the sharing of experiences and the joint commitment to social development make it clear: off the pitch, we all play for the same side.
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