Unhoused soccer players at Montreal tournament say sport changed their lives

Fabrice Mugabe says his experience playing for team Canada at the Homeless World Cup in Oslo, Norway, last year changed his life and helped him find stability.

Mugabe took part in a panel discussion today at Université de Montréal on ways to tackle homelessness with the Canadian Street Soccer Association ahead of a national tournament tomorrow.

The association gives those experiencing homelessness and social isolation the opportunity to play soccer and it selects players who will be on team Canada for the annual Homeless World Cup.

The world cup is an international tournament of soccer teams composed of unhoused people involving more than 70 organizations.

May Angela Nakintu also competed in Oslo last year and said she saw a flyer for the street soccer association at a shelter she was staying at in Toronto two years ago.

Mugabe and Nakintu are helping coach the future players on team Canada who are heading to the Homeless World Cup in Mexico City scheduled for January 2027.

On Saturday, street soccer teams from across Canada are scheduled to play in the Montreal tournament hosted by the Canadian Street Soccer Association.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published June 5, 2026.

Canadian Street Soccer Association National tournament players play a game of keep away outside, during a national forum at the Université de Montréal, in Montreal on Friday, June 5, 2026.THE CANADIAN PRESS/Christinne Muschi