Despite the struggles of conflict and displacement, the youth at GAME Lebanon show resilience and hope. As our fundraising project in Lebanon ends, we're here to share updates and their inspiring stories of carving paths through uncertainty.
11 March 2025 Andreea Enea
For our annual fundraiser in 2023, we partnered up with GAME Lebanon, an international NGO driving youth-led initiatives for social change. Centred on health promotion, the fundraising project aimed to empower Lebanese and refugee youth through sports and mentorship.
The focus on physical activity and healthy nutrition aimed to support their overall well-being, beyond just preventing diabetes. Its positive impact became clear on the ground, during our visit in Lebanon in 2023.
Up until September 2024, GAME Lebanon’s dedication exceeded expectations: they trained 170 youth sports instructors, far above the target of 70, and 27 volunteers became Health Ambassadors, mentored by nutritionists. Of the children participating in the street sports activities, 65% were not active before. Diversity-wise, 42% participants were female and 30% non-Lebanese.
Less than a year after our visit, the situation changed drastically.
Since September 2024, the escalating war in Lebanon brought new challenges to running the activities, which were already addressing an existing humanitarian crisis. Initially built as a response to the harsh realities of the Syrian refugee crisis and the economic fallout following the Beirut port explosion, the war added a layer of complexity, creating an even more difficult context.
Across the country, especially in the south, rising concerns about safety and mobility forced our partners to suspend activities. The war led to massive displacement of 1.5 million people, including project participants – children, Playmakers (as the GAME instructors are known), staff – who struggled to maintain connections and support.
Ibrahim Hourani, Country Director for GAME Lebanon, also faced displacement. Along with Ashton Mandrup, Senior Manager at GAME for the Middle East and North Africa region, he was able to visit us in Copenhagen in February, to discuss the project in its final stages.
‘It has been very hard to figure out what to do next’, Ibrahim says. ‘But what we’ve done since one week after the war started is that we’ve tried to call all the Playmakers and ask them about their location’.
Despite the overwhelming conditions, our partners have persistently prioritised the safety and small-scale support of their youth instructors.
‘All of our team is safe, though many have left their homes and are living with friends or family in different parts of Beirut or the mountains. We are still in regular contact with many of our Playmakers. Many have fled their homes and are living in shelters, and we have been doing what we can to support them and their families.’, Ibrahim shares.
October 2024: The Danish Embassy-funded GAME Zone in Douris (left). Post-conflict, the area lies in ruins (right).
Aerial strikes have left several GAME Zones – public spaces that our partners transformed into sports facilities for children and youth in ruins. But the GAME team adapted to the crisis. The construction and rehabilitation activities at the GAME House are still progressing.
‘Playmakers have been great in creating opportunities to continue their training sessions wherever they may be, as you can see in a shelter in Tripoli where the local Playmaker team have started activities with internally displaced persons’, Ashton shared.
‘The GAME team are finding work a good distraction whenever possible and are looking at ways to re-activate different activities’.
This February, the GAME Lebanon team held a two-day training camp for the Playmakers, offering a space for over 150 participants to share their experiences of these difficult times.
‘Many of them reflected on the importance of standing together and supporting each other, especially those who had to leave their homes’, shared Ibrahim. ‘Others spoke about how they coped by simply doing everyday activities like taking walks or talking with friends’.
‘One particularly inspiring story was of a Playmaker who chose to stay in his village in the south as a volunteer with the civil defence medics. He wasn’t initially aware of the risks involved—all he wanted was to help those in his community who stayed behind.’
They also spoke about how something as basic as receiving food kits for the first time in their lives became essential for survival. Returning to their pre-war lives has been hard, especially for those whose homes were affected.
Despite the uncertainties, they are rebuilding their routines—resuming studies, reconnecting with friends, and finding a sense of normalcy.
Returning to the GAME Zones and training sessions is part of that, especially for children.
Overall, WDF's fundraiser in Lebanon has had great outcomes, surpassing milestones:
The GAME Lebanon team is gearing up for more impactful work. They anticipate restarting regular street sports activities once the weather permits, and are eager to welcome more participants. For the time being, they are working hard to secure funds to fix damaged infrastructure and to help children cope.
As Ibrahim explained, the need is particularly high in South Lebanon where children have experienced major trauma.
‘They were displaced, some for a long period, and not everyone could secure proper accommodation. Some struggled to find nutritious food as well. ‘These sports activities really help them cope. Even though they returned to their towns, their homes may not exist anymore. I think it is crucial for them to go out and play’.
Both Ibrahim and Ashton underlined the importance of resuming activities, mentioning municipalities have requested to restart such programmes. Alongside other partners, the GAME team aims to widen their operations to focus on war-stricken areas.
They also spoke about the need to integrate psychosocial support more in their programming, as fostering resilience is key for the youth in war-affected settings.
Ashton added, ‘Our methods have many aspects of what good psychosocial programming requires, especially with children and youth. Safety and positive interactions are our strengths, but mental health needs more attention, whether in Lebanon, Kenya or Somaliland; their psychosocial well-being cannot be ignored’.
‘Our team in Lebanon has done a fantastic job, showing incredible adaptability and finding ways to connect with their community.’
GAME hopes to validate the impact of sports and healthy lifestyle training on youth through generating evidence, to advocate to decision makers to create more public spaces for children.