The opening is part of a new collaboration with Atlas and marks love.fútbol’s 27th community field in Mexico.
Atlas Femenil and love.fútbol have opened Cancha “La Z” in Tabachines, northern Zapopan, Jalisco, with the goal of expanding opportunities to play and strengthening access to community sports spaces across the state.
The project marks the second collaboration between Atlas and love.fútbol, a global nonprofit organization that works alongside communities to create, restore and transform safe spaces for play. It also represents the organization’s second field in Jalisco and its 27th project in Mexico.
The collaboration with Atlas Femenil brings this community-based model to Tabachines, combining the club’s experience in sports with love.fútbol’s approach to community engagement. The project also seeks to expand opportunities for girls and women to participate in sports at the new field.
“Having Atlas support a community project in Jalisco for the second time allows us to build on the collaboration and apply what we learned from the first field. These are the kinds of partnerships we need to expand access to play: commitments that can grow, adapt to each context and translate into spaces developed with communities, rather than simply delivered to them,” said Kenza Gravois, Global Director of Development at love.fútbol.
A Second Field With Atlas Femenil
Cancha “La Z” in Tabachines continues the collaboration between Atlas and love.fútbol in Jalisco. It is the second project developed with the club’s support and provides an opportunity to build on the experience gained from their first initiative together.
Atlas Femenil’s involvement is particularly relevant ahead of the Copa Femenil, an initiative designed to expand opportunities for girls and young women to play. Its participation in the project connects the growth of women’s football with community spaces where new generations can begin engaging with the sport.
“Girls’ participation should not be treated as an additional element once a project has already been defined. Including them from the beginning creates real opportunities for them to play and allows their presence to become a natural part of the community’s sporting life,” Gravois explained.
19 Years Building Play With Communities
The project carries particular significance as love.fútbol marks 19 years since opening its first field in Villa Nueva, Guatemala. Since then, the organization has worked alongside communities in different countries to create safe spaces for play and strengthen the connections that develop around them.
With the opening of Cancha “La Z,” love.fútbol now has 27 projects in Mexico, including two in Jalisco. The opening also marks its second collaboration with Atlas in the state.
The project brought together the support of Atlas Femenil, Dibujando un Mañana and Eurocolors, love.fútbol’s experience in community-led development, and the active participation of the Tabachines community in shaping the space.
Together, the collaboration seeks to expand opportunities to play while strengthening the connection between the field and the people who use it.