{"id":12119,"date":"2023-08-03T16:35:17","date_gmt":"2023-08-03T16:35:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.funminews.com\/?p=12119"},"modified":"2023-08-03T16:35:34","modified_gmt":"2023-08-03T16:35:34","slug":"bob-marley-instilled-a-love-of-soccer-in-his-daughter-cedella-now-shes-changing-the-lives-of-women-and-girls-in-jamaica","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/2023\/08\/03\/bob-marley-instilled-a-love-of-soccer-in-his-daughter-cedella-now-shes-changing-the-lives-of-women-and-girls-in-jamaica\/","title":{"rendered":"Bob Marley instilled a love of soccer in his daughter, Cedella. Now she\u2019s changing the lives of women and girls in Jamaica"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Football<\/a> has consumed much of Cedella Marley\u2019s life. But perhaps that should not come as a surprise.<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

As the daughter of global reggae icon Bob Marley, who was a renowned lover of the beautiful game<\/a>, Cedella was never far from a soccer ball growing up. Had he not been a musician, Cedella recalls her father telling her, he would have wanted to be a soccer player<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cDaddy played every day,\u201d Marley told CNN Sport<\/a>. \u201cHe would play anywhere he was: on the road, you\u2019d find a field, you\u2019d find a team.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSometimes, it would be the photographers who were out there, you know; sometimes, it would be the journalists and it would be the band against the journalists.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI watched him growing up, I also watch my brothers, Ziggy and Steve. They played football growing up, too, and it was just always something that I loved. I love to kick a ball and was super competitive when my brothers would challenge me.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Recalling advice given to her by Pel\u00e9<\/a>, Cadella smiled broadly as she repeated the words the Brazilian all-time great told her: \u201cThe ball is round and always take the penalty.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSo everything to me was a penalty,\u201d Marley laughed. \u201cI\u2019d be like: \u2018I\u2019m just going for the goal,\u2019 and that love is just something that is just in my DNA. I wouldn\u2019t change it for the world.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u2018Wait, Jamaica has a women\u2019s football team?\u2019<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Though she has loved soccer for as long as she can remember, for many years, Marley\u2019s involvement in the game didn\u2019t extend beyond kickabouts with her father and brothers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But that all changed in 2014 when one day her son came home from school and handed her a flier, saying that his soccer coach had asked him to deliver it to her.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201c<\/strong>I\u2019m reading it \u2026 I\u2019m like: \u2018Wait, Jamaica<\/a> has a women\u2019s football team? Where did this come from?\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Six years earlier, in 2008, underfunding had led to the Jamaican Football Federation<\/a> (JFF) disbanding the women\u2019s national team program. The flier Marley\u2019s son brought home was a fundraising request from the JFF to help restart the program. Marley got to work almost immediately, calling the federation the following morning to ask what it needed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe needs were many,\u201d Marley said, repeating the sentence as if to emphasize how dire the situation was.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

From travel and nutrition to accommodation and training camps, every area of the national team\u2019s setup was in need of funding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

An accomplished musician and multiple Grammy award-winning artist with the band Ziggy Marley and the Melody Makers, Marley put her considerable musical talents to work.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201c<\/strong>My family came together with me, [brothers] Damien and Steve and I, we recorded a song called \u2018Strike Hard\u2019 to raise funds,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Through a combination of the royalties earned from \u2018Strike Hard,\u2019 a GoFundMe page and by becoming an ambassador and sponsor of the women\u2019s national team through the Bob Marley Foundation, Marley says they raised $300,000 in the first year.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The women\u2019s team disbanded again in 2016, but Marley never wavered in her commitment to the program. In 2019, her efforts \u2013 and the work of countless others who were equally as dedicated to the cause \u2013 culminated in the women\u2019s national team becoming the first Caribbean country to qualify for a Women\u2019s World Cup.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Marley\u2019s work has helped not only improve standards and conditions for players, but also helped shift the country\u2019s attitude towards the women\u2019s national team.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThese girls have been told for a long time that women in sports, especially football in Jamaica, it really wasn\u2019t that important,\u201d Marley said. \u201cLike, it doesn\u2019t matter. \u2018You guys don\u2019t make money. You don\u2019t bring in the crowds. You don\u2019t do this, you don\u2019t do that.\u2019<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cNobody wants to give us brand deals because [it\u2019s] the female team and so it\u2019s funny now to see how all of that has changed drastically, not just for our women, but around the world \u2026 and that makes me excited.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018Warrior mode\u2019<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Marley was speaking from Jamaica\u2019s pre-World Cup training camp in Amsterdam, the Netherlands, organized by Ajax and Adidas. The players have had their every need catered for with the \u201camazing\u201d facilities on offer, she says.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Boasting first-class training pitches, a gym, a swimming pool and a basketball court, the Friendship Sports Centre has \u201ceverything\u201d the Jamaican players need to best prepare for the World Cup, Marley said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI remember back in the day when it just used to be like a dark room, you know, in a basement or something,\u201d Marley recalled with a dry laugh.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSo it\u2019s a big difference to see how they\u2019re training now.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Eleven of the players that went to the last World Cup are also included in Jamaica\u2019s squad for Australia and New Zealand and that added experience means expectations are higher this time around.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At France 2019, Jamaica was drawn into a tough group featuring Italy, Australia and Brazil. The \u2018Reggae Girlz\u2019 lost all three matches but created more history by scoring the country\u2019s first goal at a Women\u2019s World Cup when Havana Solaun netted in the 4-1 defeat to Australia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This year\u2019s squad boasts a number of players plying their trade at the highest level around the world, headlined by Manchester City striker Khadija \u2018Bunny\u2019 Shaw, who scored an impressive 20 goals \u2013 to go with seven assists \u2013 during last season\u2019s Women\u2019s Super League campaign.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That Jamaica has so many talented players to call upon is thanks to a number of people within Jamaican football, including former head coach Hue Menzies, former captain Alicia Wilson and assistant coach Xavier Gilbert.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

All three played a part in ensuring many of the country\u2019s brightest prospects went to schools in the United States when the country\u2019s women\u2019s league was disbanded in 2015 and the national team lay dormant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The individual and collective growth within the squad over the past four years has given Jamaica renewed confidence that it can improve on the performances from France 2019.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe want to go out there and we want to win,\u201d Marley said assuredly, with Jamaica this time being drawn against Brazil, France and Panama. Qualifying to the knockouts will be difficult, but the team made history in the opening match against France, winning a first ever point in the tournament after a heroic 0-0 draw.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s just beautiful to watch the game and our girls. They\u2019re hyper focused, that\u2019s one thing I can tell you and they\u2019re going in there in warrior mode.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, preparation for the tournament hasn\u2019t all been plain sailing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Last month, many of the first-team squad wrote an open letter to the JFF expressing their \u201cutmost disappointment\u201d in what they described as \u201csubpar\u201d conditions during their World Cup preparations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The letter also alleges the JFF has failed to deliver on \u201ccontractually agreed upon compensation.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

CNN has reached out to the JFF for comment but is yet to hear back. In a statement on its website<\/a>, the JFF acknowledged that \u201cthings have not been done perfectly\u201d but that it is \u201cworking assiduously to resolve\u201d players\u2019 concerns.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And JFF president Michael Ricketts said last month that the federation wanted to \u201cmake sure we provide as much as we can for the girls,\u201d Reuters reported.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Chinyelu Asher, who played for Jamaica at the last World Cup, told CNN that the purpose of the statement was to \u201creel in\u201d the federation and make them take the women\u2019s team more seriously.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cPeople want to know what the progress has been from the last World Cup and I\u2019m like: \u2018Well, here we are doing it again,\u2019\u201d Asher said, referencing the previous issues the team has faced.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Reggae Girlz now have a contractual agreement with their national federation, according to Asher, but still had to release a public statement to ensure that they received the best possible support for a World Cup.

That Jamaica has so many talented players to call upon is thanks to a number of people within Jamaican football, including former head coach Hue Menzies, former captain Alicia Wilson and assistant coach Xavier Gilbert. All three played a part in ensuring many of the country\u2019s brightest prospects went to schools in the United States when the country\u2019s women\u2019s league was disbanded in 2015 and the national team lay dormant. The individual and collective growth within the squad over the past four years has given Jamaica renewed confidence that it can improve on the performances from France 2019. \u201cWe want to go out there and we want to win,\u201d Marley said assuredly, with Jamaica this time being drawn against Brazil, France and Panama. Qualifying to the knockouts will be difficult, but the team made history in the opening match against France, winning a first ever point in the tournament after a heroic 0-0 draw. \u201cIt\u2019s just beautiful to watch the game and our girls. They\u2019re hyper focused, that\u2019s one thing I can tell you and they\u2019re going in there in warrior mode.\u201d However, preparation for the tournament hasn\u2019t all been plain sailing. Last month, many of the first-team squad wrote an open letter to the JFF expressing their \u201cutmost disappointment\u201d in what they described as \u201csubpar\u201d conditions during their World Cup preparations. The letter also alleges the JFF has failed to deliver on \u201ccontractually agreed upon compensation.\u201d CNN has reached out to the JFF for comment but is yet to hear back. In a statement on its website<\/a>, the JFF acknowledged that \u201cthings have not been done perfectly\u201d but that it is \u201cworking assiduously to resolve\u201d players\u2019 concerns. And JFF president Michael Ricketts said last month that the federation wanted to \u201cmake sure we provide as much as we can for the girls,\u201d Reuters reported. Chinyelu Asher, who played for Jamaica at the last World Cup, told CNN that the purpose of the statement was to \u201creel in\u201d the federation and make them take the women\u2019s team more seriously. \u201cPeople want to know what the progress has been from the last World Cup and I\u2019m like: \u2018Well, here we are doing it again,\u2019\u201d Asher said, referencing the previous issues the team has faced. <\/p>

<\/p><\/div><\/div><\/main><\/section><\/article><\/section><\/section><\/section><\/div> The Reggae Girlz now have a contractual agreement with their national federation, according to Asher, but still had to release a public statement to ensure that they received the best possible support for a World Cup <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Marley says she hasn\u2019t been in contact with the federation since the players\u2019 open later, instead choosing to focus solely on how she can directly help the women\u2019s team. Even when she first became involved with the squad in 2014, Marley says she had little contact with the JFF.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI just really talked to the girls to find out what their needs were because I can\u2019t be effective knowing what their [the JFF] problem is,\u201d she said. \u201cI\u2019d rather know what the needs are for the female team.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI don\u2019t really concern myself with matters that don\u2019t concern me. You know, the girls have spoken; hopefully, the federation has listened.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cBut what I do is that I have direct conversations with the girls to see how I can assist and I take it from there because I don\u2019t think the Jamaican federation is different from any other federation,\u201d Marley adds, mentioning the ongoing dispute between England\u2019s Lionesses and their FA over bonus payments.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u2018Football is Freedom\u2019<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Even with all she has achieved alongside the women\u2019s national team, perhaps Marley\u2019s greatest accomplishment in soccer is the founding of her \u2018Football is Freedom\u2019 initiative.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The name is taken from one of her father\u2019s famous quotes, and in October 2021, the initiative launched with a week-long training camp in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, providing the women\u2019s national teams of Jamaica and Costa Rica with training facilities before they faced off in a friendly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Since then, the initiative has expanded. In February of last year \u2013 on what would have been her father\u2019s 77th birthday \u2013 Football is Freedom hosted its first girls\u2019 soccer clinic in Jamaica, focusing on developing young women both as players and people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Marley says her initiative aims to help the girls develop life skills, providing them with mentorship and opportunities for higher education.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019ve taken everything that I\u2019ve learned over the last nine years and applied it to building what I hope is a better future, not only for my country, but Football is Freedom is an initiative that hopefully the world will adopt,\u201d Marley said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"The<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The inaugural Football is Freedom clinic was hosted in Kingston, Jamaica, on February 6, 2022 \u2013 what would have been Bob Marley’s 77th birthday.Courtesy Bob Marley Foundation<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe\u2019re starting from the grassroots level in Jamaica right now \u2026 and we\u2019re giving every girl a chance to become a game changer, not just on the pitch, but in their homes, in their communities and in life in general.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Marley admits she never really understood her father\u2019s quote when was younger, but says it now resonates profoundly with her following the journey she has been on over the last nine years.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s like I\u2019m living it,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Soccer can be a way out for girls living in \u201crough communities\u201d in Jamaica, Marley says, with some players going on to earn scholarships and the success of Football is Freedom has seen the initiative welcome Adidas and Common Goal as partners.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

She has seen first-hand how gifted some of the girls are and says this natural talent for soccer \u201ccan change their lives.\u201d All they need, she said, is to be given \u201cproper structure.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI\u2019m feeling lucky so far, but I know it\u2019s not easy to do what I\u2019m trying to do,\u201d Marley says. \u201cIt\u2019s going to take a whole bunch of people that believe in the same thing to actually make a difference.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSo I\u2019m reaching out to those believers who believe in some small way they can bring about change in people\u2019s mindsets because these girls deserve the opportunity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cEvery single opportunity that we can give them.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Jamaica has certainly inspired the younger generations with its performances at this year\u2019s Women\u2019s World Cup, holding on for an impressive draw against Brazil in its last Group F match to qualify for the last 16 for the first time in its history.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It also means Jamaica is the first Caribbean nation to ever reach the knockouts \u2013 something few would have predicted happening ahead of the tournament.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Football has consumed much of Cedella Marley\u2019s life. But perhaps that should not come as a surprise. As the daughter of global reggae icon Bob Marley, who was a renowned lover of the beautiful game, Cedella was never far from a soccer ball growing up. Had he not been a musician, Cedella recalls her father […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":12123,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"nf_dc_page":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2},"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[4,5,7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-12119","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-featured","category-international","category-sports"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.funminews.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/08\/image-15.png?fit=1280%2C720&ssl=1","jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12119","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=12119"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12119\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":12125,"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/12119\/revisions\/12125"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/12123"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=12119"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=12119"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.funminews.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=12119"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}