Noreen Günnewig appeared in an interview in which she spoke about a project which aims to integrate refugees from Ukraine into society through sport. SV Meppen is not only one of the positive surprises of the Women’s Bundesliga so far from a sporting point of view. In addition, the club has now joined a project of the Lower Saxony State Sports Association, which aims to integrate refugees from the Ukraine into society through sport. The two players Noreen Günnewig (21) and Anna Margraf (21) are responsible for the project for SV Meppen. In an interview, Günnewig explains how the idea came about, what hurdles must overcome and why it is important to her personally to support refugees.
Noreen Günnewig, together with your team-mate Anna Margraf, you have started an integrative measure aimed primarily at refugees from Ukraine. How did the action come about?
Noreen Günnewig: After we found out about the LSB program, together with our commercial manager Markus Lohle, we considered how we as an association could get involved. This is how the idea came about to offer refugees a range of sports and entertainment. In our opinion, it doesn’t just have to be about the sport. When a group has formed, you can go on a trip or a game night, for example. I see a lot of different possibilities here. It’s true that we primarily focus on people from Ukraine, but basically everyone is welcome. We would like to make an integrative contribution.
Do you work with partner organizations here?
Günnewig: Yes, we were part of the federal program “Active for Refugees – Integration through Sport”. But this initiative expires at the end of the year. Nevertheless, we want to maintain our offer for the city of Meppen and beyond. The best way to reach Anna and I is at integrationssport.meppen@gmail.com. The emails go straight to us.
Why is it so important for you to help here?
Günnewig: We are convinced that sport and football in particular offer excellent opportunities to integrate people in our society. I also believe that the refugees get along best here if they have a certain everyday structure. And maybe they can forget their worries for a few hours during our meetings. We have a very family structure here. I think that the conditions at SV Meppen are ideal for such a project.
How do you address the refugees?
Günnewig: We presented our initiative in a refugee cafe in Meppen. We also went to schools. The association has also launched a call for interested parties to contact us. But you have to be honest, it’s not that easy to get hold of these people. Many simply have other problems to solve first. Of course we understand that. But we don’t give up and keep at it. The basic interest is there and the feedback on our project is also very positive. The integration is really a matter of the heart for me and for us. We’re not giving up, even if the start has been a bit difficult so far.
