In Cameroon, teenage girls defy filial restrictions, societal prejudices to play and excel in football
With Cameroon’s Indomitable Lionesses becoming one of three African teams to qualify for the Women’s World Cup, girls in the country’s capital, Yaounde, have also taken to playing football even as it continues to be largely considered a man’s sport in the country
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With Cameroon’s Indomitable Lionesses becoming one of three African teams to qualify for the Women’s World Cup, girls in the country’s capital, Yaounde, have also taken to playing football even as it continues to be largely considered a man’s sport in the country. Reuters/ Zohra Bensemra
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The Cameroonian soccer players Gaelle Asheri (17) and her teammate Ida Pouadjeu (16) are two of as many as 70 girls learning football under professional coaches at the Rails Foot Academy (RFA) in Yaounde. Reuters/ Zohra Bensemra
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Cameroon’s soccer sensation Gaelle Enganamouit was the brainchild behind setting up this academy for female soccer players. Girls from impoverished backgrounds are provided with professional training, jerseys, training equipment and a physiotherapist to train them in the sport. Reuters/ Zohra Bensemra
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Coach Emmanuel Biolo talks to the girls during half-time at the Rails Foot Academy. The training centre gets its name from the train tracks surrounding the football field that also function as makeshift stands for spectators. Reuters/ Zohra Bensemra
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Asheri first started playing soccer in the streets around her home and was the only girl on the team. Reaching at the academy she says was like another world where you are ‘forced to do all harsh work so you reach a level where tears usually come out with sweat.’ Reuters/ Zohra Bensemra
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An orphan, Pouadjeu was raised by her aunt who forbade her from playing football. For her part, the soccer player chanelises her anger towards working on her game every day. Reuters/ Zohra Bensemra
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Girls kit up to attend the training session of the female U17 team at the Rail Football Academy field in Yaounde against all prejudices that frown upon women’s soccer. Reuters/ Zohra Bensemra
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