“Sport unites”: Lasting support for migrants in Coburg

Brose is helping to fund Coburg Council’s Coordination Office for People from a Migrant Background, which was founded in 2016, for the fourth year in succession. The office makes it easier for migrants and refugees to start their new life in Germany and helps them find their feet in everyday life.

Before the game between BBC Coburg and FC Bayern Munich II on February 2, Daniel Bott, Head of Company Sport at Brose, presented the donation check for €20,000 to Thomas Nowak, the 3rd Mayor and Social Welfare Officer, and Holger Diez, Head of the Social Services Department. “Good intercultural interaction is vital to the success of a global company like Brose,” stated Bott. “A common passion for sport makes a key contribution to that. That’s why we promote and sponsor it inside and outside our company.”

Brose employs around 26,000 people from 91 countries and runs a worldwide healthcare management program offering an extensive range of sports. As a result, the family-owned company not only nurtures the health and capabilities of its employees, but also their sense of community. “We experience a magnificent feeling of solidarity among colleagues transcending all cultural differences at the international tournaments and championships our company stages,” noted Bott. “Respect toward each other, such as in sport, is an important component in our society and a core value of our company. So we’re delighted to be able to do our bit again to help integration work in Coburg,” summed up Bott. At Brose’s initiative, the BBC basketball club and Coburg Social Services Department intend to work even more strongly together in the future. The sports offering aims to make it easier for refugees to participate in society.

“Sport has a great potential to integrate. It can promote social integration of people from all groups in society – including refugees. It offers a framework for encounters beyond all social differences,” said Nowak to the large audience as he expressed his thanks for the support.

The advice bureau looked after a total of 61 asylum seekers and 688 migrants from countries such as Syria, Eritrea, Afghanistan and Iran in 2018 alone. Sport offers a great platform to enable refugees to make an active contribution to social life in Coburg.

The advice bureau is located directly in the building that houses the Social Services Department, at Am Viktoriabrunnen 4, Coburg. It is part of the subject area “Asylum and Refugee Affairs” and so persons who get in touch with the department for the first time are immediately put in contact with the Coordination Office.