What We Do
Coach. Educate. Empower. Using sport to help children in Cambodia grow.
The Problem
In rural Siem Reap, most children grow up without organised sport. Village schools are asked to teach physical education, but few have the equipment, space or trained coaches to do it. Many children also take on work at home from a young age, which leaves little time to simply play. Girls often stop playing altogether once they reach their teens. Without regular sport, children miss out on the confidence, teamwork and healthy habits it builds.
The Solution
The Globalteer Sports Programme brings free, organised sport to children in their own villages and schools. Our local coaches run weekly football and volleyball sessions, physical education lessons and after-school clubs, and we provide the balls and equipment. Every session pairs a sports skill with a life skill, so children learn about fair play, their rights and their health while they play.
Our Mission
Our mission is to bring sport to children in Cambodia who otherwise would not have it, and to empower them along the way. We use sport to teach leadership, teamwork, fair play and social issues. The values of sportsmanship and self-improvement shape everything we do, and children help shape the programme with their own ideas.
Today our sports programme in Cambodia reaches more than 2,500 children across 7 villages and 9 schools, and we have been working with children in Cambodia for over 10 years.
Our work is built around these focus areas: Physical Education, Child Safety, Sports Festivals, Goals for Girls, Rural Coaching, Sports for Social Impact, Community Outreach, Volunteering and our Champions.
Physical Education
Our physical education lessons teach children how their bodies work and how to look after them. Children learn to warm up and stretch before they play, and why these simple routines matter for sport and for everyday life. Coaches also show them how to deal with common injuries like scrapes and bruises. For many students, this is the first structured PE they have had at school.
Help every child build healthy habits through sport.
Child Safety
Every session takes place in a safe, supervised space. Our sports programme draws on Globalteer’s Child Protection Project, which combines policy, research and a classroom curriculum covering the main safety concerns children face. Keeping children safe on and off the pitch is the starting point for everything else we do, and it reflects best practice in ethical volunteering.
Help make sure every child can play safely.
Sports Festivals
Temple Run is our annual fundraising run in Siem Reap. It brings together fitness, fun and support for children in Cambodia.
Our sports festivals are all about taking part. They are free, open to all genders and abilities, and around 1,000 children have joined in from eight children’s centres, community centres and schools. The yearly Globalteer Games run like a mini-Olympics, with an opening ceremony, running and jumping events, sack races, three-legged races and tug-of-war. Children practise for weeks beforehand, and the focus is on good sportsmanship rather than winning.
Help children enjoy the excitement of game day.
Goals for Girls
In rural Cambodia, most girls stop playing sport in their teens because it is seen as an activity for boys. Goals for Girls gives around 25 young women aged 16 to 19 a space of their own to play, lead and learn. Through sport and leadership workshops, the girls explore role models, confidence and the role of women in their community. At the end of the year, they help run the Globalteer Games and put their new skills into practice.
Help girls in Cambodia reclaim the sports field.
Rural Coaching
Access to sport is limited across Siem Reap, and even more so in remote villages. Rural schools are asked by the government to include sport in their curriculum, but most do not have the equipment or the know-how. Our coaches work with local schools and non-profit organisations to run PE lessons and after-school clubs, teaching football and volleyball in an organised way alongside positive social messages.
Help bring quality coaching to rural villages.
Sports for Social Impact
Sport is a powerful way to talk about real issues. Between regular coaching sessions, we run special activities that link the game to everyday life. Each one focuses on an important social topic: children’s rights, the environment, gender equality, alcohol and drug abuse, and corruption and fair play. Children then take these lessons from the playing field into their homes and communities.
Help children learn life lessons through play.
Community Outreach
We take sport to where children live. Our coaches travel to villages and partner schools across Siem Reap province, bringing equipment and weekly sessions to communities with no sports facilities of their own. Working closely with teachers, families and local leaders helps us reach more children and build trust in every community we work with.
Help us bring sport to more villages.
Volunteering
If you love sport, you can share that passion as a sports volunteer in Siem Reap. You don’t need to be a trained coach, just energetic and keen to help. Volunteers support our local coaches in sessions, plan and design new games, and help run sports for social impact activities, with full training and support provided. It is a rewarding way to support children while getting to know Cambodian culture.
Share your love of sport with children in Cambodia.
Our Champions
The real impact of our Sports Programme shows in the children who take part. Shy students find their voice, players learn to lead their teams, and girls discover what they can achieve on and off the pitch. Our Champions stories share the difference that sport, support and opportunity can make. Every story reflects the commitment of our coaches, donors, sponsors and volunteers.
Read inspiring stories from the pitch.