Idlib, Syria – Abdul Qader Youssef stands on the sidelines, leaning on his crutches and looking nervously at the pitch. Then he heads towards his teammates to encourage them before kickoff of their first match of the competition.
Youssef has been playing football since he was eight, but the 30-year-old only lost his leg 10 years ago.
“I’ve loved football since I was a child and this love still flows through my veins,” he said.
He used to play for al-Karamah – one of Asia’s oldest football clubs based in Homs, Syria – until 2011’s Arab Spring.
President Bashar al-Assad’s government responded to protests by killing hundreds of demonstrators and imprisoning many more.
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