Six years ago, Ricky Michel (centre) 23, and Varney Kamara (right) 20, were brutalised teenage soldiers fighting on opposite sides in Liberia's civil war - now they are team-mates playing football.

Football’s Hidden Story is a unique project which aims to show that there is another side to football - away from professional leagues and highly-paid players. These stories are mostly about ordinary people with extraordinary lives and they tell how football has motivated or inspired them in a variety of ways. But sometimes they are about  people who have taken on a challenge to make the most of their talents in a most unexpected way.

For example an Italian psychiatrist is obtaining startling results with patients suffering from schizophrenia and depression by enlisting them in a competitive football team. Of the 80 who have passed through the ranks since the team formed in 1993, over half have cut down their drug intake, but more importantly, more than half have returned to work. (See Story No.19 'Football tackles Schizophrenia' and picture above.)

Or how about the story from Liberia where an observant football official noticed child soldiers kicking a milk carton and persuaded them to put down their weapons to play with a real ball. This was the start of a scheme where brutalised young men were encouraged into teams and ended up as friends rather than enemies. (See Story No.12 'Football for Peace').  

Written versions of the stories are available on this site, which is designed exclusively for use by the written media. Journalists and picture editors may also download high-quality high resolution photographs with a simple click from the Image Gallery. Please click Information for Journalists to see how to use the site.

Football's Hidden Story is supported by the game's world governing body, FIFA.