This summer, the third group of children traveled to the Republic of Austria for a holiday thanks to the joint efforts of the Ukrainian team of the «GLOBAL2000» CHARITABLE FOUNDATION, the Austrian team of the Kinder- und Umwelthilfe Ukraine project, the environmental organization GLOBAL 2000, and caring people in Austria who provide financial support for the program and warmly welcome the children into their communities.
This trip was special for several reasons. For the first time, the program welcomed a large sports team comprising more than 40 players from the MSK Kharkiv Academy. It was a pilot format designed to combine a fulfilling holiday with regular training sessions.
The children spent two weeks in Wagrain, a small Austrian town surrounded by mountains. They were accompanied by a coach, parents, and other adults who helped supervise the group. For many of the boys, this was their first sports training camp and their first extended trip away from their familiar home environment.
Holidays and Football
The program was designed to ensure that the children maintained their sporting routine while also having the opportunity to switch off, recharge, and enjoy new experiences.
“It was the perfect balance: we played football while also spending our time very actively, discovering Austria, going on excursions, and relaxing. There was just the right amount of everything,” says one of the mothers who accompanied the team.
The accommodation was particularly well suited to an active group of children: there were sports grounds nearby, plenty of space for physical activities, and a water park, which the children visited almost every other day. Rugby and archery sessions were also organized for the team, along with a hike through a specially equipped forest trail. The hotel also hosted two outdoor barbecues.
The program was so busy that the group simply did not manage to visit some of the planned locations. However, the children certainly had no time to get bored. One mother recalls that some parents even messaged the accompanying adults to ask whether everything was all right with their children, as the boys hardly ever called home: they were constantly at training, on an excursion, or taking part in another activity.
A Journey the Footballers Will Remember for Years to Come
One of the main highlights was a trip to Munich. The young footballers visited the world-famous Allianz Arena and the FC Bayern Museum, where they saw trophies, football kits, and an exhibition dedicated to the club’s history.
Even the adults who were not particularly interested in football admitted that the scale of the arena was impressive. For the children, the excursion was an opportunity to see professional football from an entirely different perspective.
One of the boys celebrated his birthday on the very day the group visited the stadium. The team congratulated him right there in the arena — a symbolic moment that the young footballer is unlikely to forget.
The program also included a tour of Salzburg, a visit to BMW Welt, a mountain gorge with a waterfall, and a motorcycle park.
Great Responsibility and Complete Safety
Traveling with 41 children posed a significant organizational challenge, especially when the journey involved traveling from Ukraine amid attacks on trains, changing connections, using public transportation in small Austrian towns, going on excursions, and attending daily training sessions.
“I’m proud that we didn’t lose anyone even once,” jokes one of the mothers.
Despite the difficult journey, busy schedule, and fatigue, the children did not want to return home. One mother said that on the final day, her son told her, “It’s a pity we have to leave.” When she reminded him about his father, grandmother, sister, and home, the boy simply replied, “But I like it here.”
This is precisely why the Foundation’s summer holiday program exists: to give children from Kharkiv an opportunity, even if only for a while, to step away from their everyday reality, take a break from air-raid alerts and attacks, feel safe, discover new places, and once again focus on ordinary childhood things — friendship, play, sport, and dreams.
The third group marked an important step forward for the Foundation. It demonstrated that the summer holiday format can be further developed and adapted for large sports teams. We hope there is more to come…
