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Football coach gives refugees hope

June 26, 2021

The Greek island of Lesbos is struggling with a tide of refugees. Dire conditions in the camps keep making negative headlines around the world. Evangelos Spanos wants to give refugees some hope — and is using soccer to do it.

https://p.dw.com/p/3vaU5

About two dozen refugees train at Cosmos F.C..Through Evangelos Spanos' experience as coach and sports scientist, he knows that hard work alone is not enough to achieve your goals — you need some talent, too.

Paul Asema Yongo is in his early 20s, hails from Cameroon, and can offer both — hard work and talent. He dreams of a career as a professional soccer player. Evangelos Spanos supports Yongo as best he can, but many locals are still hostile toward refugees.