In an exclusive interview with The Journal, Fabricio Coloccini talks for the first time about his childhood struggles, his charitable foundation and how he was nearly forced to quit football. Mark Douglas reports
IN A barren back street in Alta Gracia near Córdoba, Argentina’s second city, there sits a modest building flanked by a smattering of hockey and football pitches.
It might not look like too much from the outside, but it is a monument to the fact that sport saves lives.
It is a message that the building’s owner, Newcastle defender Fabricio Coloccini, knows only too well. As he freely admits in this wide-ranging interview, were it not for the power of football his own destiny could have veered into a very different path.
Coloccini gave the green light for its construction five years ago as his professional career began to really take off. The riches he was earning at Deportivo La Coruna had turned a child with a tough upbringing into a man of considerable wealth, and he wanted to plough some of that fortune back into a city with problems.
Inspired by a strong Catholic faith and his own tale of sporting resurrection, he set up the Mama Silvia Foundation – a place where the cities’ abandoned street kids could come for a hot meal, a game of football and most importantly, a friendly, welcoming face.
It now helps more than 150 children every day, encouraging integration between Argentina’s street kids and middle classes and breaking down the barriers of poverty and a tough upbringing with the help of hockey, football and a warm cup of tea.
“Football can change lives. It can save lives,” says Coloccini, who visits the Foundation for three weeks a year during the off-season.
“My home city is a beautiful place but there are some problems there and I set up my foundation to help out the youth of my home city.
“It is a place for children between five and 15, mostly children who are homeless or in trouble.
“We have pitches to play football or hockey – or chess boards for them. It is good because it breaks my heart to see children on the street. I don’t like to see them drinking or taking alcohol or drugs and getting into bad situations.
“I think it is good. We can take these kids and give them something else to do. They can have something to eat, they can have a cup of tea, they can talk to someone.
“They can spend time playing football, hockey or chess. It’s good, it brings them together and is something good for them to do rather than drinking or fighting or being on the streets. I did it to help my city, which is still important to me.”
Coloccini’s benevolence is inspired by his own back story, a tale of poverty that is surprising considering his father Oswaldo was a professional footballer of some repute when he was younger.
“I lived both lives when I was younger. I saw how it is for both sides,” he admits.
