Football on water: TCD meets A.S. Sant’Elena
Image: Ondine Kapala (@lapetitevague)
Is the VENEZIA LEAGUE the most beautiful six-a-side league in the world?
Associazione Sportiva Sant’Elena a pretty compelling case. But the club has a deeper mission, rooted in the culture of Venice.
We spoke to Tommaso Kusch, President of A.S. Sant'Elena, to find out more about the club's origins, the success of the VENEZIA LEAGUE, and their mission to preserve the city's public spaces.
“The historical centre of Venice is visited because of its past, not because of its present. That’s what we wanted to change.”
Tommaso Kusch — President, Associazione Sportiva Sant’Elena
Associazione Sportiva Sant’Elena is fast becoming a footballing force in the city of Venice.
Formed in 2021, the group has expanded from its three founding members to a community of over 500 people from all over the world.
“Venice and the outside world has had a rough relationship in the last few years, largely due to mass tourism. We wanted to help renew the relationship between Venice and its global links, which are deeply rooted in Venetian culture and history.
“We started out as mainly foreigners — international students from the city’s universities. But when more and more of Venice’s locals joined, that’s when the football magic happened.”
A.S. Sant’Elena’s crown jewel is the VENEZIA LEAGUE, a 6-a-side league competition that sees 10 teams face-off from November to April in one of the most beautiful settings on the planet.
With an authentic, organic community and a broad diversity of thought, A.S. Sant’Elena realised quickly that they could use football as a force for change.
“Football is a way for young citizens to get back public spaces around the city. We wanted to push the local administration to renovate the public pitch of Sant’Elena.”
Image: Ondine Kapala (@lapetitevague)
Lying at the eastern tip of Venice’s main island, the area of Sant’Elena has a long history of its own. Its church and monastery were built in the 12th century, and it houses several significant naval buildings.
But it’s also home to Stadio Penzo, the home of Venezia FC.
Around the time Sant’Elena formed, Venezia were riding the crest of a cultural and footballing wave. It’s a period that had a clear influence on Tommaso’s creative outlook.
“One of our main inspirations was Venezia FC. They really set a trend of a wider vision of what football could be.”
“We would look very different without them,” Tommaso admits.
But Sant’Elena have established a visual identity unique to themselves, charting their own path.
“We started out with authentic values: an international outlook with a deep attachment to the city of Venice. We’ve been able to work with amazing videographers and photographers, to help tell our story. We worked with some of Venice’s top artisans in order to make the trophy.”
The trophy to which he refers is the prize for their recent 3v3 Sant’Elena Tournament, a special cup edition of the VENEZIA LEAGUE. Throughout March and April, matches were played at the iconic Rialto Fish Market, taking the notion of street football to a whole new level.
A.S. Sant’Elena have, in a truly organic way, added yet another cultural dimension to the history city of Venice, using football as the vessel.
According to Tommaso, it was “something Venice deeply needed, even if it didn’t know it.”
Follow the success of the VENEZIA LEAGUE, and the initiatives of A.S. Sant’Elena over at their Instagram: @santelenavenezia. Photography by @destiniforti.
