Sami Khedira Foundation
Charity

Mission

My foundation will support projects in favour of disadvantaged children and young people. This will not necessarily always be in the area of Stuttgart, but that’s where I’m going to keep my focus.

I want to give children and teenagers a unique opportunity and I want to encourage them to achieve something in their lives. I am aware that this is not always possible, especially for those who suffer from diseases and therefore don’t have the same chances.

Within my foundation I have set up a committee in which we discuss the possible projects and where we decide if and how we can get involved. We‘ll announce all the projects on our website and our project will hopefully be supported by the media in order to ensure the best possible transparency regarding the use of funds.

The first foundation project supported three children’s homes and a hospice in the area of Stuttgart. These children got the chance to enjoy soccer training under expert guidance over several months. With their sportsmanship, team understanding and individual effort they could enter the Gazi Stadium in Stuttgart-Degerloch with international soccer stars for the “Game of the Year” on 14/06/2015. There was also a tournament for B-Youth teams from Baden-Württemberg, where the players could be nominated by professional scouts and qualify to participate in the “Game of the Year”. In the “Game of the Year” the B-Youth players formed about half of the team. The other half were international top stars from almost all European leagues as well as highly praised international senior players.

Who was there? Luka Modric, Mario Gomez, Lukas Podolski, Jerome Boateng, Miroslav Klose, Sami Khedira, Jens Lehmann, Roman Weidenfeller, Andreas Köpke, Max Kruse, Patrick Herrmann, Cacau, Kevin Trapp, Guido Buchwald, Oliver Bierhoff, Hansi Müller, Shkodran Mustafi, Christian Gentner, Jogi Löw, Julian Draxler, Timo Hildebrand, Ludovic Magnin, Fredi Bobic, Krassimir Balakow, Antonio Rüdiger, Timo Werner, Heiko Gerber, Thomas Tuchel, Christian Groß, Jürgen Sundermann, Knut Kircher, CRO, Andreas Bourani.

All revenues benefited the children’s hospice and the children’s homes and support children through sport!

Greeting remark

THE PRIME MINISTER OF THE STATE OF BADEN-WÜRTTEMBERG

We all still have the pictures of the 2014 World Cup in mind, when the German national team won the title. We the people of Baden-Württemberg are particularly pleased with the natives of this state Joachim Löw, Hans-Dieter Flick, Matthias Ginter and Sami Khedira, who have all contributed their part in this historic title. For this success the team has worked hard and took advantage of the opportunities.

Working hard and taking advantage of your opportunities – Sami Khedira has followed these guiding principles throughout his career. With the “Game of the Year” initiated by his foundation, Sami Khedira offers children and young people from the region of Stuttgart a unique opportunity: Prior to the game, seven to twelve year old children can qualify during training sessions and matches to enter the stadium with the stars whilst the older players have the opportunity to be rewarded with a space in one of the two teams. I was very happy to take over the patronage for this charity match themed “get opportunities and take advantage of them”.

Instead of simply organising a show of the world’s greatest football players, Sami Khedira involves the children in the “Game of the Year” and focuses on the power of sport: Especially team sports, such as football, create a sense of community and provide joy of togetherness despite of their competitive character. Origin and skin colour do not matter on the football pitch; and thanks to the universal rules, linguistic and cultural barriers can be overcome.

Sport has the power to tear down barriers and to build bridges between people and is an indispensable part of public life. Sport also contributes to the individual’s quality of life because it keeps us on the ball and allows us to explore our physical limits creating a good physical feeling. Sport is especially important for children and youngsters: It helps to prevent health problems and also provides important values such as team spirit, fairness and discipline.

In short, with sports we can do good – for ourselves, but also for others. This is demonstrated by Sami Khedira and all who participate in the organisation and implementation of the “Game of the Year” and make a commitment to sport in the service of a good cause. I sincerely thank them for this exemplary dedication.

I hope the charity match has a high-score result and is of great entertainment for all guests. As patron I hope that at the end of the game there will be a high amount collected for the benefit of disadvantaged children and young people.

Winfried_Kretschmann_Unterschrift
Winfried Kretschmann
Prime Minister of Baden-Württemberg