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Major League Soccer (MLS) club, D.C. United, has partnered with UK-based charity Twinning Project and the DC Department of Corrections (DOC) on an initiative to enhance inmate wellbeing and reentry through soccer education and sports leadership trainings. The eight-week program began on August 20 and is reaching incarcerated individuals at the Central Detention Facility (CDF) and Correctional Treatment Facility (CTF) in Washington DC.
As of 2023, 5,000 people were incarcerated in Washington DC with an additional 5,700 on probation or parole. The capital has an incarceration rate of 816 per 100,000 people. According to the Washington Department of Corrections (WADOC), of approximately 8,000 incarcerated individuals who are released from prison each year, about 30% will go on to re-offend and end up in prison again within three years.
This initiative wants to reduce these statistics. Originating in the UK, the Twinning Project currently engages with over 70 Premier League and Championship-level clubs. The partnership between HM Prison and Probation Service (HMPPS) and the professional soccer clubs aims to “twin” every prison in England and Wales with a local professional soccer club. It also delivers programs in Australia, Italy, South Africa and now, the US. The project uses soccer-based programs to improve inmates’ mental and physical health and wellbeing and obtain a qualification, which will help improve their life chances and gain employment on release.
As part of the project in DC, qualified coaches from D.C. United and the D.C. United Academy will visit the facility twice a week to provide training and educational support to low-risk, pre-qualified inmates approaching release. The program intends to enhance participants’ critical life skills, including patience, discipline, teamwork, sportsmanship and confidence, while also improving their physical and mental well-being.
“The Twinning Project is delighted to be expanding its US footprint with our valuable partners D.C. United and DOC. Over the last six years, the Twinning Projects, a proven criminal justice sports-based intervention, has been delivering encouraging results with significant impact. D.C. United and DOC join a host of professional sporting brands and correctional facilities on four continents delivering this valuable inspirational work,” said Hilton Freund MBE, Global CEO of the Twinning Project.
Many prisoners have been excluded from school and have developed a resistance to learning and exercise according to the charity. While most prisoners are reluctant to engage with mainstream educational and vocational training offered in prisons, the Twinning Project reports that once in custody, prisoners participate in 1-2 sessions of physical activity per week. Therefore, it “engages the disengaged” by using soccer to help break barriers through professional coaches and referees and uses sport as a catalyst for change.
The program, designed to be fun, engaging, and challenging, will utilize both indoor and outdoor areas within DOC facilities.
“Over 95% of the individuals in our care will eventually return home and the critical work of providing them with the tools and opportunities needed for successful reentry starts as soon as they enter our facilities… Programs like this play a critical role in enhancing physical and mental well-being of our residents and offer creative outlets that reduce tension and contribute to a positive environment,” said Thomas Faust, Director of the DC DOC.
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