5 donors join Ascent Soccer’s new campus Naming Campaign  in December alone; has already hit almost 75% of its goal

* Your generosity continues to amaze us! Opportunity for the underserved talent and promise of Malawi and Southeast Africa is being transformed — because of you!

* Your support in 2024, and incredible year end push, unlocked new scholastic, sporting and leadership pathways for our amazing girls and boys. Thank you!

By Duncan Mlanjira

In December alone, 5 donors have joined Ascent Soccer’s new campus Naming Campaign and has already hit almost 75% of its festive season’s Holiday Campaigngoal.

In its report, Ascent Soccer’s co-founders, Adrian Bradbury and George Maguire, applaud the donors, saying: “Your generosity continues to amaze us! Opportunity for the underserved talent and promise of Malawi and Southeast Africa is being transformed — because of you!

“Your support in 2024, and incredible year end push, unlocked new scholastic, sporting and leadership pathways for our amazing girls and boys. Thank you!”

First to respond to the naming campaign, dubbed ‘Operation Education’ at the beginning of this December which is ending on Wednesday, were Adaptavist, the Seth Family and Appleyard Family and the new ones are John DeWitt Gregory Charitable Trust and Thomas Rockman.

Ascent Soccer acknowledges that the John DeWitt Gregory Charitable Trust’s generous gift for Library & Resource Centre will drive the love of reading of the institution, which is the academic foundation of its education program.

“This opportunity is funding the expansion of our reading and resource collection for both the Ascent students and staff. Education Centre was offered at a gift of US$10,000 and the facility has four more spaces up for grabs on classrooms.

Thomas Rockman joins The ‘Seth Family’ in claiming the Education Centre at a gift of US$10,000, the home of the brand new school and dedicated homes to maths, sciences, English & languages, the arts and so much more.

With three more available, Ascent Soccer further woos potential sponsors that funding it will help outfitting of their classroom spaces and the support of a lead teaching staffer for one year.

The Appleyard Family took the campus’ Outdoor Education space, which is the brand new green education and permaculture space — a real life academic hub that will boast new local rewilding and agricultural education plots.

While the Adaptavist took the Digital Learning Centre at US$20,000 gift, aligning themselves with the technology hub — a modern learning and innovation space, and with Adaptavist’s support this space will be outfitted with new laptops, robotics and Lego STEAM education programming.

The non-profit making football academy in Lilongwe is an academy catering for Southern and Eastern Africa in the development of football and academic courses and the naming rights offer a unique opportunity to be recognised on the campus along with on-site naming recognition for individuals, their business brands or to honour a family member or friend.

Ascent Soccer will also promote the donors support through its online channels and present them with a personalised framed print of their named space.

For naming rights of the entire Ascent Soccer campus, is at generous offer of US$100,000, which will have the donor’s name emblazoned at the gate as “an opportunity to claim top billing and naming rights for the entire campus”.

“When you unlock this opportunity, you will be funding an entire year of staffing for our Malawi-based leadership team,” says the invitation.

The campus has a beautifully designed environmental sustainability structure, the Great Hall, made from bamboo and is home to the academy’s nutrition centre, dining hall and event space.

It is being offered at $25,000 gift, which will connect the donor’s name directly with the heartbeat of the campus — funding an entire year for the kitchen team and enhanced nutrition program.

Its three football pitch spaces go at US$5,000 each on two full XI-aside grass football pitches and the brand new 5-aside pitch, whose quality care of the fields are vital through extreme heat and rain, and are an important piece of the youth soccer development.

“When you unlock this opportunity, you will be funding field care materials, equipment and grounds keeping for one year,” says Ascent Soccer, which can be contacted through the co-founder & director, Adrian Bradbury through adrian@ascentsoccer.org.

Ascent Soccer starts at the grassroots, inspiring and nurturing talented girls and boys in Southeast Africa “to be brave, to lead by example and to believe in their ability to transform themselves, their communities and the world”. 

“We are soccer and scholarship that puts people and the planet first. Our 4 Pillars are Soccer, Scholarship, People and Planet. Ascent Soccer empowers talent and promise in Southeast Africa, as the greenest soccer club and academy on the continent.

“We are a social impact organisation that transforms the lives of young men and women in some of Southeast Africa’s poorest countries by providing opportunities for comprehensive education, critical life skills and character development — combined with world-class soccer skill development.”

Based in Malawi, with registered charity operations in the USA and Canada, Ascent Soccer was founded in 2014 and works with over 85 boys and girls carefully selected from across Southeast Africa.

“Ascent graduates have gone on to win life-changing scholarships at elite global boarding schools, with other Ascent scholars representing the academy in youth national teams and at major European club tournaments.”

The global scholars in the US and Canada, include six from Malawi — Elias Zebron who graduated at the Taft School and is at Trinity College in the US; Lughano Nyondo, a graduate at Northeastern University Brooks School; Christina Kakhome at Lake Forest College and graduate of Milton Academy; Latu Kayira at Brooks School; and at Milton Academy Emmanuel Cheyo and Daud Major.

From Zimbabwe is Edna Macuacua, who is at Milton Academy while Ugandan Issa Abdu, a graduate of St. Andrews College in Canada, is at Western University — whose compatriot, Geoffrey Orgenrwot is also a graduate of St. Andrews College and is at Dickinson College.

“Ascent’s vision is to guide youth to realise and reach their potential, growing into exceptional young men and women who not only re-invest in their own communities, but provide opportunities for the success of future graduates,” says the academy.

“Many grassroots projects spread their resources across thousands of participants over short periods, with the goal to reach as many deserving young people as possible.

“Combined with that mission, we also aim to drive systemic, lasting change by invest deeply in talent, desire and promise, catalyzing a small but mighty group of young leaders to leverage the opportunities and platform provided by Ascent Soccer, across Southeast Africa.”

Ascent Soccer maintains that its Global Scholars are the inspiration that drives its student-athletes in Southeast Africa, and this opportunity in North America is nurturing their role models and leaders of tomorrow.

The academy has nurtured many talented youngsters, who have been identified for Malawi national teams at junior level, both men’s and women’s football.

Last October, two-time Malawi Player of the Year, Rose Kadzere (18) signed for Montpellier HSC of France’s top women’s league on a three-year deal, making her Malawi’s first-ever player (male or female) to make a direct professional football move to one of Europe’s top five leagues.

In May, Kadzere was nominee for the Female Emerging Talent Award at the inaugural Council for Southern African Football Associations (COSAFA) Awards, after she starred for the Malawi senior national team in November, when they claimed the nation’s first COSAFA Cup title.

She was nominated alongside fellow Ascent Soccer’s Leticia Kanyamula, who won the award.

Ascent Soccer’s 9th Global Scholar, Daud Major made an impact for joining Boston’s Milton Academy as the speedy winger’s international pathway generated over US$3.5 million in scholarship value for the Ascent Soccer’s operations.

Ascent U21 girls became the first youth team ever to compete in an adult/senior Champions League event during the CAF Champions League-COSAFA qualifier, which Football Association of Malawi hosted.

They earned the place in the qualifiers after their stunning victory in May during the Malawi’s Senior Women’s National Championship under the tutelage of head coach and operations director, Thom Mkolongo.

In July, the Ascent Soccer U16 girls became Malawi’s first full female squad (junior or senior) to ever play competitively in Europe, with Faith Chinzimu leading the way with nine goals in six games, versus the likes of Arsenal, Brighton, Bayern Munich and FC Nordsjaelland.

While Ascent Soccer U16 boys went a three-week international tour that included stays in Iceland and Ireland which was their second straight year where they went to defend the Rey Cup.