South Asian Heritage Month Blog - Belal Hussain
"Our diversity is our asset."
In this blog, Belal talks about navigating prioritising football against cultural norms, how taking on leadership roles has enabled him to give back to the community and how he is supporting the next generation to chase their dreams.
"When I was younger, I used to play football locally at the park and travel by myself to training, my parents were unable to support me playing as they would be working to look after the family. I never had opportunities growing up to play football at a competitive level from a young age, until I got older and was independent enough to fund my own travels and pay the costs involved in football which by then I felt was too late for me to progress. Football has never been seen as a priority in South Asian families, more so for their children to thrive in academia. I want to show parents that with their support, our talented players today can have a successful career.
"Today, through my experiences of working in schools, being in leadership roles and working with Premier League clubs, it gives me the opportunity to give back to the community where I grew up and across London to today’s under-represented youth, a platform to go and play at the very top level.
"Anyone that is interested in getting their child into football, please get in touch. We have sessions running from 1.5 years old all the way to 16 years of age alongside our partnered clubs. Working alongside others, I run the South Asian Champions League which is a competition to give our youth to play competitive football. Our first league was held in Slough and what a success it was, a number of guests attended and now some of our players are going on to represent our local team (Brentford FC) at the Premier League Talent ID Festival.
"By showing commitment and never giving up, the sky is the limit. Regardless of race, culture or background, football brings everyone together. I learnt all about life with a football at my feet and encourage all youth to chase their dreams.”
You can find out more about South Asian Heritage Month here.
SAHM Blogs 2024
Click the links below to read our other blogs from 2024 South Asian Heritage Month.