Game of Senses: Women’s Blind Football
In blind football, women are still a rarity. Jana Marquart and Thoya Küster are out to address this. The newly formed blind women’s football national team is aiming to change the game at the World Championships in Birmingham.
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NewsTranscript
00:00 (upbeat music)
00:02 - They're pioneers on the ball.
00:04 - I hope it's a start and that we go down a path
00:10 that many more women will follow.
00:12 - It's a sport that dazzles the senses.
00:18 - I can't even manage a no-look pass.
00:22 It's incredible.
00:23 Coaching players who compete from the first to last second
00:26 without ever seeing the ball is unbelievable.
00:29 - A sport that's inclusive.
00:32 - It's an awesome sport because it brings
00:34 two worlds together, the sighted and visually impaired.
00:37 - At the World Cup, the German national team
00:44 aims to impress.
00:46 - Of course, in the back of our mind,
00:50 we're quietly hoping to win,
00:52 but I'm especially looking forward to meeting
00:54 new women's teams and playing them.
00:57 (upbeat music)
00:59 - It's match day in the German blind football Bundesliga.
01:09 St. Pauli are getting ready, among them 17-year-old Toya.
01:13 She's the only woman in the team.
01:15 - Just one quarter of visually impaired people
01:22 who have the potential to play
01:23 actually take part in blind football.
01:25 The sport isn't that well known.
01:27 It's great that women are taking part,
01:30 but cases like Toya who can keep up with the guys are rare.
01:33 Other women would not be able to play at this level.
01:36 - The final preparations ahead of an important match
01:43 against Hertha Berlin.
01:45 Coach Wolf gives important instructions.
01:48 - Communication doesn't mean saying one sentence
01:53 every 10 minutes.
01:54 You always have to know where your teammates are
01:56 on the pitch.
01:57 The Japanese always say, "Hey, hey," or "Hey, hey."
02:01 They always know where each other are.
02:03 - Hey, hey, hey.
02:04 (speaking in foreign language)
02:07 - Toya is among the most experienced female players.
02:10 She started playing at the age of nine.
02:12 - I had a tough time at the start because it was only men,
02:19 but I settled in and then it was very nice.
02:24 - Before the match, the referee checks the eyes
02:27 of every player.
02:28 These special goggles guarantee that it's a level
02:30 playing field when it comes to sight.
02:33 - I can still see a little, but I have to strain very hard
02:41 to get any vision.
02:42 When it's football, I can just switch off my vision
02:44 and only hear and speak.
02:46 It's a very freeing feeling.
02:48 Because there's limited space and I know the measurements
02:51 and distances on the pitch very well,
02:53 it really is a sense of freedom
02:54 and I feel really good.
02:56 (speaking in foreign language)
03:00 - It's go time.
03:15 Toya is amongst the action and holding her own.
03:19 A metal plate in the ball makes a rattling sound,
03:21 letting players know where it is on the pitch.
03:24 By shouting "Voy", teammates let each other know
03:27 where they are.
03:28 The sighted goalkeepers are not allowed to leave their box,
03:31 otherwise they concede a penalty.
03:33 Sighted guides give audio cues to help players
03:38 locate the goal.
03:39 Communication is key in order to help sighted
03:46 and visually impaired players work together.
03:49 - I've become much more confident.
03:53 At the start, I was very shy and didn't talk much.
03:56 In blind football, you need to speak a lot
03:59 and so I've become much more communicative.
04:02 - During the games, it's quiet,
04:07 but in the break, the fans give it their all.
04:09 One vocal supporter is Jana Marquardt.
04:14 She's a national team player like Toya
04:15 and today she's supporting her club's Bundesliga side.
04:18 - Everyone is equal on the pitch,
04:22 whether you're fully blind or still have some vision,
04:25 you're all the same.
04:26 It's a total team sport with sighted
04:29 and visually impaired players together.
04:31 It only really comes together when we play as a unit
04:36 and communicate as a team.
04:37 I really enjoy that then.
04:39 - The post is open.
04:48 Right.
04:51 This one's closed.
04:53 After St. Pauli failed to convert their many chances,
05:03 the Berliners get a goal.
05:05 But Toya's team doesn't give up.
05:18 (players cheering)
05:21 They earn a point after drawing,
05:28 but unfortunately it won't be enough
05:30 to win the German league title.
05:32 While football makes up a big part of Jana's life,
05:47 trips like this one to the Hamburg city park
05:50 are a welcome distraction.
05:51 The Blind Football World Championship in Birmingham
05:58 is just weeks away.
06:00 Jana will be there competing with the women's national team.
06:03 The reigning European champions qualified automatically.
06:06 Despite their clear success,
06:12 there is still a lack of funding from football associations.
06:16 The players have to take the initiative
06:18 in order to raise around 45,000 euros
06:21 needed to attend the tournament.
06:23 - We started a crowdfunding campaign
06:32 and the money started trickling in.
06:34 We were really lucky and had so many fantastic people
06:37 give us the opportunity to raise awareness with the public
06:40 and show what we do, who we are, and why we want to do this.
06:45 It was a huge opportunity
06:47 and we're still really incredibly thankful for it.
06:50 - Jana has only been playing this sport since 2020.
06:58 Now a life without blind football is unthinkable.
07:01 Just a few days remain until the world championships.
07:07 There aren't many training sessions left.
07:10 (ENGINE REVS)
07:12 - It's this feeling when you notice, "That's my thing."
07:18 I got that feeling in my first training session
07:20 and I never wanted to leave again.
07:22 - Hey! - All good?
07:26 - Yes.
07:27 - Along with sporting success,
07:29 Jana also aims to raise awareness for women's blind football
07:32 during the tournament.
07:34 - I hope this is a start
07:39 and that we can go down a path that many more women will follow us on.
07:42 Also that in future it's not going to be such a big struggle
07:46 and that through funding,
07:47 lots of women and girls can get a taste for football.
07:51 There are many of them all over,
07:52 they just have to be reached and activated.
07:54 - Because there aren't enough women at training,
07:58 men join in for today's practice match.
08:01 - Involve women in the game in a success and team-oriented way.
08:05 That's the men's job.
08:07 Realistically, I want Jana at position two,
08:09 Matilda outside.
08:11 Change it up.
08:12 - I'm really excited to be playing so many different teams.
08:19 I think we're well prepared and it'll be really good in Birmingham.
08:24 It'll be a challenge,
08:26 but I think we can shake things up a bit.
08:28 - The team is hoping to get into form
08:35 in one of their last tests before the tournament.
08:38 Members of the St. Pauly men's team help fill out the line-ups.
08:41 Jana's main task is to defend,
08:48 which isn't easy against an opponent like Toyah.
08:50 Her experience and control on the ball make her nearly unstoppable.
09:01 - Jana!
09:02 - Come on, Toyah!
09:04 - Over here!
09:05 - Shot!
09:06 - Yes!
09:07 (CHEERING)
09:09 - The team is well prepared for the world championships,
09:14 with Toyah in super form.
09:16 (CHEERING)
09:17 In Birmingham, everything starts smoothly.
09:23 But after the first few training sessions,
09:30 some bad news reaches the squad.
09:32 At the final eye test in England,
09:35 Toyah's vision is deemed too good for her to take part.
09:40 The forward is disqualified and cannot play.
09:43 - Because I was able to play the European championships,
09:48 I never imagined this could be the case,
09:50 so I was very disappointed and sad.
09:53 I felt awful when I was told about it.
09:59 - Without Toyah, the German team is lacking a proper goalscorer.
10:03 Still, the players give it their all in the first match against Argentina,
10:07 but lose the opener.
10:09 - Argentina captain gets the...
10:10 - Turns beautifully, lovely from Johanna.
10:13 What a shot, what a goal!
10:14 - Toyah can only support them from the stands.
10:18 Against Austria and India, things get better.
10:27 Jana and her team get two goalless draws.
10:30 - It was a lot of fun watching them
10:38 and seeing them develop from game to game.
10:40 I never thought if I'd been playing, we'd have won.
10:43 I never did, but I would have liked to fight alongside them.
10:46 - Toyah stays in England with her team.
10:51 Ahead of their final match, the squad makes a trip to the city.
10:55 Despite the lack of a big success, the players enjoy the positives.
10:59 - I learned how important it is to be assertive and to stick together.
11:11 Also to be open to others, new things.
11:16 But also to do things with the team,
11:19 to be there for each other, to look out for each other,
11:23 on and off the pitch.
11:26 - The match for seventh place is decided in a penalty shootout.
11:30 Amir Schvortz steps up
11:34 and scores to prompt wild celebrations among the German team.
11:38 - She can't save that one, though.
11:42 And Germany...
11:43 - My wish for our team is that we keep at it,
11:47 that we continue to train together,
11:49 that we develop individually
11:51 and that at some point it will be more recognised
11:54 that women also play blind football and play it really well.
11:59 And I'm looking forward to that.
12:03 - The World Championship title goes to Argentina,
12:09 who came out on top against the other seven women's teams.
12:13 Jana, Toyah and their team also don't go home empty-handed
12:17 after they exchange shirts with the new world champions.
12:21 - Hi.
12:22 - Hi.
12:23 - How are you?
12:24 - Fine.
12:25 - No, eh...
12:26 - Very good.
12:28 [LAUGHTER]