Football Cooperative

Our ambition is to make Football Cooperative a social practice that a social worker, a therapist or HR manager can prescribe in order to improve individuals mental and physical wellbeing. Our online platform will provide educational articles on men’s mental and physical health as well as blogs for community discussions.
 

Beyond game delivery, we deliver added value activities that range from our ‘goal post chats’, to meet ups to watch football as well as engagements to help participants think about their health and understand the early signs of

men’s health issues.
 

We are looking to expand our services and create Impact Trading with corporates and companies to help them meet their employee wellbeing needs and provide opportunity for team building experiences. This will positively result in increased productivity and enhanced team dynamics.
 

Delivery of recreational football games has evidenced people from a wide variety of backgrounds engaging on and off the football pitch, creating stronger connected and harmonious communities.

Football Cooperative is a social enterprise established for men, by men. We know that men’s health experiences are shaped within complex social systems that have a multiplicative effect on social (dis)advantage and that masculinity and its intersection with aspects of male identity shape health behaviours.

Therefore a central focus of all men’s health policy has been the provision of gendered approaches to health-related services for men that account for the complex factors that shape men’s health experiences and behaviours. Football has been viewed as an important medium to engage men who are seen as reluctant or unwilling to access traditional health services. 
 

Our games are suitable to all levels of fitness and designed to be as accessible and affordable as possible to ensure continuous inclusion for all.
 

We actively work with Limerick Direct Provision, facilitating transportation and equipment to those who are restricted in their access. This allows people of different backgrounds to play sports together enhancing social integration. We are looking to collaborate with more groups to bring about social cohesion through delivery of inclusive recreational activities.