When the football crosses the sky of the slums, a review of the InitVerse St. Paul Charity Action

Illuminate the green dreams of children in Brazilian slums with the glimmer of Web3.

On June 14, 2025, at the Arena Brahma football stadium in the Jardim Peri community in northern São Paulo, the InitVerse team collaborated with the Brazilian charity A.A Garotos de Ouro to ignite a charity match about courage and hope for 47 young footballers trapped in the shadows of local drugs and poverty. This is the second time InitVerse has brought Web3’s social responsibility into reality, following the "Waterway Classroom" in Benin, and it is also our first commitment to "Technology Guides Civilizational Development" in the football kingdom of Brazil.

Football is the "road to redemption" for the slums.

A.A Garotos de Ouro means "Golden Boys" in Portuguese. This organization, rooted in one of the largest slums in São Paulo, has woven a safety net with football for over a decade—they rescue children from the drug dealer-infested streets, transforming abandoned lots into training grounds, and have trained several professional players to date. When InitVerse local representatives Stefani and Arthur stepped into this community divided by barbed wire, the coach pointed to the weathered goal and said: "The children here are not playing football; they are playing with courage and hope."

The sunlight at 3 PM scorches the artificial turf, but what is hotter than the temperature is the children's gazes. We brought 25 brand new jerseys embroidered with the InitVerse Logo, 50 delicious meals, and Children's Day candy gift boxes. When 11-year-old Enzo received the new jersey, he instinctively buried his face in the jersey and took a deep breath, saying: "I really like this new jersey that belongs to me." Previously, he had to frequently share a worn-out old training shirt with other kids.

We recorded the purest dreams of the children (the following interview content has been organized in Portuguese):

"Who is your favorite athlete?"

"Neymar!" 12-year-old Rafael answered quickly, "He came from the slums just like me, and now he has built soccer schools for 1,000 kids."

"What do you want to say to your idol?"

9-year-old Maria clutched the candy box: "I will tell Messi, I hope I can be as great as you because I also have a football dream!"

"What does the dream of becoming a professional player mean to you?"

Captain Thiago pointed to the shed on the hillside in the distance: "If I sign with the club, I can move my family away from here, and my sister and I won't have to sleep on the ground anymore."

"Can you describe your community and what your day is like?"

"I will help my mom with work at 5 AM, then have lunch. In the afternoon, if I can play football, that would be great. We will keep playing until it gets dark. It’s not very safe here at night, so I will go home before it gets dark." Carlos rolled up his football socks, revealing a scar that ran down his calf. "This was from last year when I dodged a gang shootout and got scraped by barbed wire, but the coach told me Ronaldo has a similar 'champion's medal' on his leg."

From the waterways of Benin to the slums of Brazil, the driving force of Web3 philanthropy

Similar to the "NFT Charity" we held last time at Lake Ganvié in Benin, all of InitVerse's charitable actions focus more on the growth of children's spiritual world. Perhaps the children's impoverished backgrounds cannot be changed, but they have the dreams and courage to change themselves. What InitVerse aims to do is to help children realize their dreams. We refuse to narrate a tragic story; instead, we replace donation boxes with candy boxes and dilute the stigma of slums with friendly matches. Stefani summarized after the match: "We are just helping these children hold on to the path of football, which is filled with courage and dreams."

When the final whistle blew, the children rushed towards the camera holding signs that read "Web3 sees your dreams," while the rusty goalposts in the background contrasted sharply with the colorful graffiti of football stars on the distant buildings. A.A. Garotos de Ouro's coach told us: "Today a child asked me which club InitVerse is. I told him this is the Web3 club that believes poor children deserve great dreams."

Perhaps Web3 cannot eradicate slums overnight, but when 22 "golden boys" run across the field wearing jerseys embroidered with the same logo, the most touching value of blockchain is happening, allowing the invisible to be seen. As Neymar said in the documentary: "Football doesn't provide all the answers, but it offers an opportunity to ask questions." InitVerse's philanthropic journey is about helping this world hear more "muted questions."

Written at the end

The training footage and interview recordings of these children will be permanently stored on the INIChain network. We are exploring the "Football Dream NFT" program, which will mint the goal moments of slum boys into digital badges. The future sale proceeds may establish a charity fund.