eenager Asad Nasir – a part of Pakistan’s street children team that played in the World Youth Football Cup in Norway a few days ago and came second – says he had never imagined he would be playing at such a level.

Nasir, who is from Tandlianwala, in Faisalabad district, had worked as a labourer with his father before getting selected for the team by Muslim Hands, a UK-based non-government organisation operating worldwide, focusing on orphan sponsorship, education, water, health, livelihoods and street children.

“I liked to play football in the village. One day, one of them told me that Muslim Hands was organising a camp and suggested that I should go for trials,” Nasir did not believe that he’ll ever be selected. “I thought I would never be selected, but surprisingly I was the only one among 80 children who was selected for the country’s street children team,” he tells The News on Sunday.

Following the selection and training at Muslim Hands academy in Mirpur, Azad Kashmir, Asad played in the Street Children World Cup held in Qatar two years ago.

“This was my second street children’s world cup. I hope that I will be a part of the team for another couple of years,” Asad says, adding, “Muslim Hands is also providing education and a stipend this time.”

Abdul Wahab, a fellow member of the team, is from Dera Ismail Khan. He says his father is a vegetable vendor. Before his selection, Wahab used to help his father in his work. He would also play football in the streets. He dreams of becoming part of the national football team and playing for Pakistan.

World Youth Football Cup was held in Norway this year. Pakistani team dominated the event with an impressive performance in the Norway Cup. Pakistani street child football team scored 28 goals in the tournament and came second. It won seven out of eight matches in the tournament. The team lost the final on penalty kicks. Tufail Shinwari, the captain of the team scored ten goals in the tournament and was declared the best goal scorer and best player.

Saadia Altaf Qazi, Pakistan’s ambassador to Norway, played a special role in promoting, helping and taking care of the team in Oslo, team members say. Over 100,000 members from the Pakistani community in Norway supported the children through community gatherings and on the ground.

World Youth Football Cup was held in Norway this year. The Pakistani team dominated the event with an impressive performance in the Norway Cup. Pakistani street child football team scored 28 goals in the tournament and stood second.

Pakistani street children’s team was also part of international world cups held in Brazil, Russia, and Qatar in the past.

Street Child World Cup is a global movement started a decade ago with the aim of uniting street children from five continents ahead of the FIFA World Cup to highlight the right to identity, protection from violence and the right to education for street children.

Syed Lakhat-i-Hassnain, the global head of the Muslim Hands is originally from Sohdra, Wazirabad. He operates the NGO from the UK. “We try to help them become good players and human beings,” he says, adding, “These are hidden jewels. We need to polish and present them before the world.”

“In 2014, a global charity for street children planned this cup. They urged us to help put together a team from Pakistan,“ Hassnain says, adding, “This not only gives recognition to our children but also Pakistan.”

Today, Muslim Hands has 17 academies and runs many schools in the country that cater to the needy, especially street children and orphans. It has set up an Astroturf in Mirpur, Azad Kashmir, where the selected team sets up camp for training and education.

Today, at least 30 players from previous teams of street children are playing for various departments and government organisations in the country. A couple are part of the national football team.

“This is the largest football academy in Pakistan. It is the biggest nursery of football players,” street children team’s coach Abdul Rasheed Butt says. He adds, “This can be scaled up with help from the government.”

He says, “We train our children on this self-styled Astroturf. In international street children tournaments, they have to play on real grounds. That is why sometimes they do not look competitive. Unfortunately, Pakistani clubs having their own grounds do not allow us to play and practice there.” Butt urges the government, departments and influencers to help the cause.

The writer is a staff member. He can be reached at vaqargillani@gmail.com