Auckland Grammar School Online Community

"Football can be really positive" - Andrew Aris '91

Friday, 28 April 2023

Football is one of over 30 sports on offer to students at Auckland Grammar School with a number of Old Boys going on to have significant careers with the sport. One such Old Boy who has gone on to have a very successful career is Andrew Aris '91, who was in the 1st XI for his final two years at Grammar.

In 1995, Andrew was the top goal scorer for the 1st XI during the New Zealand Secondary Schools Championships at St Bede's College, as well as beating the School record of 45 goals in a single season. "We had such a good 1st XI team that year. We should have won the National Championship, but we lost to Palmerston North Boys' High School. Goalkeeper Jacob Oram (former Blackcap all-rounder) made some outstanding saves in the semi-final and that was the only game we lost that season."

Like many Old Boys before him, Andrew relished his time at the School - "you are in a very privileged position being an Auckland Grammar School student" - and it gave him the confidence to follow his dreams. "Being at Grammar strengthened my belief that I could do anything I put my mind to. It can help you to discover who you are and the things in life and work that you are passionate about. If you love what you do, you will do it well and with great conviction wherever in the world you may be. Dream big and do good!"

Andrew finished up at Auckland Grammar in 1995 and received a four-year scholarship to play Football at the University of Notre Dame and has been travelling the world ever since. After moving to Germany to complete his Masters in Public Policy, his 'never-say-die attitude' helped him found Spirit of Football, with Football as its central element.

A non-for-profit community-interest company, Spirit of Football has been running events and working with schools since its inception in 2005, with Andrew involved in every detail. "We have developed a curriculum around 'fair play', moving into inclusion of people with or without intellectual disability in mixed teams, something we are still working on today (we are working with the Special Olympics to ensure this is an ongoing partnership), and we have worked with them in more than 50 countries."

Part of the curriculum the organisation has developed is how to motivate people about climate change, through speaker series and workshops at a number of schools, particularly in Germany. As with the majority of Europe, the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic meant Andrew's work had to move online. "We started to go digital with some of the school workshops, but what we do is far, far more effective face-to-face when we can bring people together, playing and interacting."

At the heart of Spirit of Football's ethos is The Ball, a year-long project and is Football's equivalent of the Olympic torch. A football is signed, kicked, played with, and carried from 'the home of Football', Battersea Park in London (the home of the world's first ever football match on 9 January 1864) and travel 18,300km across the world to Auckland for the opening of the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup in July.

"When people sign The Ball, what they are signing up for are things such as the inclusion of the intellectually challenged, the integration of migrants and refugees, and for the 2023 journey, women's equality and climate action. For them, it is an individual pledge to change their behaviour to help the environment."

A whole day was dedicated to the start of the journey, with Andrew saying it is a festival-like atmosphere with games of football using the 'old school rules' (a mix between Rugby and Football), modern-day rules and 'fair play' rules (the idea that anyone, anywhere can play irrespective of race, religion, gender, sexual orientation, intellectual capacity or talent) which is a methodology he has been working on for the past few years.

Since then, The Ball has travelled across Europe, the United Arab Emirates, Turkey and Jordan, across the Atlantic Ocean to the United States, and will travel through south-east Asia into Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Malaysia, Indonesia and Fiji, before arriving in New Zealand in July and Australia in August.

The journey is definitely not linear by any means, but The Ball will arrive in New Zealand with all sorts of messages, something that Andrew is very heartened by. "For those most affected by climate change such as the Pacific Islands, where sea levels are rising, and to hear from indigenous communities about their ideas for climate action; it will be great to hear from them what they are doing to combat this."

Andrew still plays Football today but mainly as a social player - "playing Football in Germany is quite aggressive!" - but he says it isn't about winning or losing; it is about getting involved. "The fan culture can be quite ugly with homophobia and hate in stadiums. I wanted to use Football as a way to educate young people, especially to bring different communities together to fight against racism, and exclusion and to fight for inclusion and integration. Football can be really positive."

Andrew is following The Ball's journey through to its conclusion and will be in Auckland in July and August for the beginning of the FIFA Women's World Cup. He is looking forward to being back home at his alma mater and talking with students and staff about issues that are close to his heart.