The Uweza Soccer Academy provides both boys and girls from the Kibera slum the opportunity to participate in coached training sessions as well as matches and tournaments with other youth from Kibera. Current Uweza teams include boys Under-8, Under-10, Under-12, Under-14, Under-16 and senior and girls Under-12 and Under-16.

The soccer academy was started with one team in August 2007 by a group of boys from a children's home in Kibera that played soccer with with rubber-banded plastic bags every day in a small, cramped area outside of the center. A coach from Kibera began to hold weekly training sessions with the team. The team continued to train throughout the crisis that followed the 2007 Presidential Election and membership slowly began to grow. View photos of one of Uweza's first practices in January 2008 here.

Today, the Uweza Soccer Academy includes over 130 players ages 5 to 22 who come from throughout the slum to play. We employ five coaches and rent a large field at a Kibera primary school for weekly training sessions. Both the boys and girls teams are well known in Kibera for their abilities and have won trophies in several tournaments.


Uweza FC (Uweza Senior Team) Starting in 2012, the Uweza senior team is participating in the Football Kenya Federation's Nairobi County League. The team is composed of players ages 16 to 22 who travel throughout Nairobi every weekend to play with other senior teams. Playing in the league keeps these players, who are at a particularly vulnerable age, occupied and away from unsafe activities. Most of the players are in high school and are encouraged to focus on their education. Many of the players have been supported with provision of school fees, exam registration, and school uniforms to ensure they complete their high school education. Like Uweza FC on Facebook.

Uweza Kibra League The Uweza Kibra League, sponsored and run by Uweza, brings together Under-10, Under-12, and Under-14 boys and girls teams from different Kibera clubs to play competitive matches every Sunday. The league was launched in March 2012 and currently has a waiting list of clubs hoping to participate next season.

Why the Uweza Soccer Academy is important:

1. Teams act as a support system: Being able to come to play every week gives the players a sense of regularity and stability in a living environment that can be chaotic. Coaches act as mentors for the players and liase with parents to ensure players' overall well-being

2. Skills building In addition to creating skilled soccer players, the academy equips players with skills such as discipline, leadership, and teamwork through a points system. Coaches award players with points at each training session. An award ceremony is held every term to recognize players for committment to the academy and skills gained.

3. Productive use of time Participating in soccer keeps players occupied in a safe and productive activity. Players are more likely to stay away from drugs, crime, and other negative behaviors that result from idleness in the slum.

4. Reducing tribalism The academy combats tribalism by combining players and coaches from many different ethnic and tribal backgrounds.

5. Educational support Players are encouraged to attend after-school tuition, provided by Uweza. Every term, all participating players are provided with school notebooks and pens. Winners of the skills-building points program receive additional education awards. Players are asked to submit report forms every term so coaches can follow up with academic progress.