Youtuber Starts Life-Changing Project to Empower Women in Soccer

· The project’s idea is to give every women an opportunity to play soccer.
· From ESPN to having her own YouTube channel.
· Since its creation, “Passa a bola” have changed many lives.
With 235,000 Instagram followers, Brazilian soccer influencer Luana Maluf uses her platform to create a women’s soccer project.
“Passa a bola,” which means “pass the ball” in English, is a space where women from every age, skill and characteristic have the opportunity to play since it gets harder to find teams after the college years.

How it all started
Maluf said she played soccer in college, and after she graduated with a degree in public relations, she decided to invite her friends to keep playing soccer once a week.
“After the games, we would post pictures on social media, and I would receive messages from different women asking if they could play with us,” Maluf said. “The story was always the same; they didn’t play since they were kids, or after college or even because they had kids now.”
Maluf said she found an opportunity to make her hobby a job. She said she decided to create a list online where any woman could apply to go play, and in one week she had 250 requests. Today, the project counts 80 girls every week and has a waiting list with more than 100 names.
Student and soccer player at Oklahoma Christian University Catharina Ribeiro said the project makes total sense for women from Brazil.
“At home, the way people look at soccer is totally different from here in the U.S.,” Ribeiro said. “It is really hard to find places to play because soccer is considered a sport for men. I have played with boys my whole life. What Luana does is very important for these girls to have the opportunity to play.”
Oklahoma Christian University student and soccer player Paulina Dziubek said projects such as “Passa a bola” are very important socially.
“It’s nice to meet new people through doing what you enjoy,” Dziubek said. “I met a lot of people playing soccer, people that I will always cherish in my life.”

The love for soccer is the reason behind everything
Maluf said her relationship with soccer is what made her conquer everything she has. She said she has written about the sport since she was 13 years old.
“I grew up in the bleachers and going to the stadium with my dad,” Maluf said. “To do sports for a living was always something I wanted to do; I just did not know how to get there. I worked in advertising and companies such as Red Bull until ESPN found me and gave me an opportunity.”
Maluf said ESPN gave her an unpaid blog on their website and would eventually put her on TV for their shows.
“I did it out of love,” Maluf said. “It was the space I needed. In a very short time, the audience started to recognize me and follow me on social media. Then I decided to produce content for them without the TV to intermediate.”
Maluf’s YouTube channel is called 1x0 feminino, which means 1–0 to the girls, and has more than 173,000 subscribers.
Ribeiro said she started following Maluf after she saw a video about her favorite team.
“She was talking about Flamengo, and some friends sent me her video,” Ribeiro said. “Her approach was what impressed me. You can tell she is always well-prepared before she starts talking about something.”

Changing people’s lives
According to Maluf, being successful is not about money and fame, but about impacting people in a positive way.
“I started to receive messages saying my videos helped people to go through personal problems at home,” Maluf said. “Helping someone facing depression was the peak. I think that if someone writes you something and tells their personal, emotional and serious things, the least we can do is to pay attention. I am happy they trust me. I try to be transparent and positive.”
Dziubek said YouTube can be a great opportunity to give women more space into the soccer world.
“I think what Luana does is great,” Dziubek said. “We need more women in this industry. We have as much or even more knowledge that boys do sometimes. It makes me proud that a woman has been successful in that field.”
