OUR STORY
Developing children through the game of tennis
Federico Coppini Foundation is a non-profit organization established in 2019 in Stellenbosch, South Africa.
The foundation was established by tennis media entrepreneur Federico Coppini who is the CEO of Tennis World Magazine International. Being a well experienced coach and father himself, he has seen the developmental benefits that tennis offer and is inspired to make the game widely accessible to children.
FCF works in partnership with Tennis South Africa (TSA), Western Cape Tennis, Winelands Tennis Federation and the Stellenbosch Municipality, to bring about sustainable tennis development in the region.
A word from the founder
Federico Coppini Foundation (FCF) was founded in 2019 to share my passion for tennis with disadvantaged children in Stellenbosch. The project grew quickly to include primary schools in Kayamandi, Jamestown and Ida’s Valley, as well as the children’s home in Cloetesville. Initially tennis orientation and coaching were presented at schools, but the lack of facilities and space were prohibitive.
During this period TWF also took on the management of the Strand Tennis Programme for children. This programme has since grown in numbers, quality of coaching and overall management.
FCF signed a lease with Stellenbosch Municipality in 2021, to renovate and manage the Ida’s Valley tennis facility. The venue was upgraded by FCF at a cost R900 000 and is now a home for children’s tennis in Stellenbosch. We currently present coaching, tournaments, and holiday programmes for over 350 children at the facility.
The completion of this renovation and upgrading project, together with the successful establishment of our School Tennis programme led to further development opportunities. In 2022 FCF signed a lease agreement with Stellenbosch Municipality to upgrade and manage the Van Der Stel Tennis facility (VDS). This project is nearing completion and R2.3 million is currently being invested in the first phase of the upgrade.
The vision is to turn this venue into a world class tournament facility in Stellenbosch.
The foundation has two clear objectives, firstly to restore tennis as a widely played sport amongst children, and secondly, to produce the tennis stars of the future. Through our work with children, in pursuit of both these objectives, we have come to the realisation that tennis alone is not enough to truly impact young lives. We have since shifted our focus to include both on and off the court interventions. We are introducing two new programmes in 2023, adjacent to out existing programmes.
The new projects are aimed at offering holistic life development support together with the game of tennis. This will be done to mitigate the social challenges that prevent talented young players from accelerating at the sport.
This proposal outlines our plans and the resources needed to make it a reality.
Tennis World Foundation was recently renamed to Federico Coppini Foundation. This was done to include wider projects into the foundations. Our tennis programmes will in future be known as the Tennis World Foundation Project.
Thank you for your consideration
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