“Sport is my life”
|Sejfudin Beganovic played for Bosnia & Herzegovina in Fuenlabrada in 2022. Image: HWC/Rebecca Corbett
Sejfudin Beganovic represented Bosnia & Herzegovina in Fuenlabrada in 2022.
Sejfudin’s life has been defined by two main things, first - his love of football, and second - his attempt to find secure housing.
He recently started a two-year master’s degree – unlike lots of other students, the main reason for Sejfudin - it guaranteed a place to live for the next two years.
Growing up in an orphanage with 200+ other children and young people, his living conditions were never secure. He was often moved from place to place. At 18, the safety blanket disappeared completely.
As a good student he was able to secure housing while he studied his undergraduate, he’d found a solution, even if it was a temporary one.
But after completing his four years of undergraduate study in sport, Sejfudin’s insecurity came back. The answer was two more years of study and a masters, as this meant two more years of a guaranteed roof over his head.
But he’s worried about what he will do when his finishes his masters and has to leave university.
“I don’t have anywhere else to live. I was very afraid about what I would do and where I would life if I didn’t choose to stay on. There’s been a lot of problems in Bosnia & Herzegovina since the pandemic.
Prices are going up in every sector and housing is very expensive. There are opportunities but prices are very high and it’s not possible for people like me to be able to afford it.”
“I’m very afraid about what I will do after I finish my masters, after I finish, I think I will be in the streets. There is nowhere to go.”
It’s not only unaffordable housing that is the problem for people like Sejfudin, it’s also a lack of jobs with salaries that can cover the rising costs.
“You can have the highest score in the faculty and in the university but it’s still really hard to get a job. Even when you do get it, the pay cheque is very low. It’s not enough to cover your costs for a month, it’s maybe enough for 10-12 days.”
For Sejfudin, one of the places he’s able to escape his daily worries about his living situation, is on the football pitch. He’s played since he was a child.
“Sport is my life, in many times in my life it has helped me in difficult situations. Growing up in the orphanage, sport was how I communicated with people, including with my friends, and finding people I had things in common with.”
It’s also offered him support and some financial benefits as he plays for his current team, FK Bosna Kalesija.
“When I was young, football was my world, it was something I knew. Now I’m playing to fight for a life, to have that part of a pay cheque so I can buy some things. Now sport is existential, before sport was something I enjoyed, now it’s a means that I am using to provide for myself as much as I can, even though it’s so little and not enough, but I am trying my best to provide for myself and to be a role model for the guys around me.”
As well as being a role model, Sejfudin has enjoyed being part of the team and representing Bosnia.
“Playing for Bosnia and travelling with the team, it was an honour and something very special for me.”
Another highlight for him and the other Bosnian players was visiting one of the legendary homes of European football, the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium in Madrid.
Team coach, Adisa Spahić explained: “These guys have never had a chance to leave Bosnia, going to the capital [Sarajevo] is a struggle. But being here it’s awesome besides playing sport and playing against other teams, they also got to visit the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium. It was a surprise, and it was really, really nice to take them there. We’ve tried to make this trip very memorable for them.”
“The team will always cherish playing here, and their memory of visiting Santiago Bernabéu!”
Sejfudin smiles and adds, “this is a huge thing for everyone being here and I’m very grateful.”
Find out more about International Forum of Solidarity EMMAUS and their street football programme in Bosnia & Herzegovina.
Words & Images: Rebecca Corbett