Happy Birthday coach Saadiq!!! @saadiqmohammed21

A long overdue post about our dear friend @libandinho . For those of you who have never seen our film or maybe don't remember, it was Liban who first reached out to us after we went to Nariobi to spend time with the Somali Men's nat'l team. At the time, he was helping a young Saadiq try and organize some clips in hopes he might be seen by scouts. Their friendship is a big part of the film but what wasn't seen on camera was the dozens of hours of footage he worked on and all the calls he made with us to help translate with Sa'ad in the year prior to his coming to the states. Liban first came to the US in 2011 to be with his sister and nephew and in doing so had to leave his mother behind. Eight years later, in the summer of 2019, he became a US citizen and two things happened: the door finally swung open for him to chase the career ambitions that eluded him without US citizenship and he could begin to make plans to get back home to see his mom. Those plans to get home were shelved for a year plus with Covid but thankfully he was able to get back on track late last year when he was fully vaccinated and able to travel. This a photo of the two of them together in Addis Ababa last month- just over a decade after they last saw each other. MEN IN THE ARENA So many people have thoughtfully messaged us about ESPN's Man In The Arena podcast with Tom Brady saying, "did you know they pulled your film title?" Yes, we saw. No, we haven't listened to it yet, but we have heard good things. We named our film Men In The Arena because we wanted to challenge the single story narrative of a war torn Somalia with a look at the lives of young people chasing their dreams. Football, the American one Tom plays and the one the rest of the world plays, places women and men in competition in physical arenas, but the "blood", "sweat" and "tears" that Roosevelt spoke of in his now infamous 1910 Citizenship In A Republic speech was about engaged citizenry: those who actually "strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause." Liban, this county and your family are very lucky to have you. Please give our best to mom!

Repost from @player_development • Talking Tactics with Coach Saadiq! #SLSGignite

🇸🇴Repost from @nasrabc • Mogadishu Stadium

Wow ... Repost from @cantoobo Mogadishu Stadium in full Capacity for the Somali League Title-deciding game. Mogadishu City Club Vs Horseed

Repost from @ilwadelman • 🕊🕊#RIP to my dad Elman Ali Ahmed who wore white everyday as a symbol of peace & swore he’d only cut his locks the day the war ended. ✌🏾He didn’t live to see that day in #Somalia unfortunately but the marathon continues. 🏁🏁 Thank you to everyone who joined us today on the Facebook and Zoom event to hear his story and honor his memory. A recording will be released soon. 🕊🌸AUN 🙏🏾🕊 09/03/1996

Yes! Somali President (and former football referee) Farmaajo got some juggling in today 😀. If you haven't seen it, check out @dalsantv 's coverage of today's historic re-opening of Mogadishu stadium. 🇸🇴

Some good news! 🇸🇴 The long wait is over- football returns to Mogadishu Stadium on Tues. Really wishing Ahmed, the former Somali Nat'l team goalkeeper, was here to see some of his former mates take the pitch - he would be crazy proud. We wanted to share this clip from the film in his memory. *See the remarkable re-design of the stadium in the second photo. #oceanstars

💔Repost. --- "Nothing will ever be the same."

The Elman women will forever be among the brightest lights to come out of the Horn of Africa. Our hearts are broken for everyone who knew Almaas Elman and took strength in her courage. Take one look at her twitter feed and you'll quickly be reminded just how much she loved her family, her work and her country. One of her final posts, before she too was taken by senseless violence was of her sister, Ilwad, speaking at the United Nations yesterday. Thank you Almaas for your remarkable life and light.

This family. 💙

The New York Times new East Africa Correspondent!! Beyond thrilled for @abdi_latif and readers around the world who can follow his coverage.