Cox’s Bazar
Spirit
Shirts are tucked in, laces tied, balls flying, music playing, matches screening — and the unbeatable spirit is palpable in and around the Cox's Bazar refugee camp in Bangladesh.
Cox’s Bazar is located on the southeast coast of Bangladesh
A new chapter for girls who break down stereotypes in Cox's Bazar
In the world's largest refugee camp in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh, sport lights up the lives of thousands of children. When they wear a new kit, pass a football to a friend or hit a 6 in cricket, happiness, friendship and positivity take centre stage.
Cox's Bazar hosts more than 1 million Rohingya refugees, a stateless Muslim minority, who have been forcibly displaced from Myanmar in successive waves of violence. They live in the camp since 2017 with few opportunities or prospects for the future. Over half of them are children, brimming with talent and potential.
Life in the world's largest refugee camp should be about much more than just survival. This is why we joined forces with football club Paris Saint-Germain and the incredible Bangladeshi NGO Friendship to build a clubhouse on top of a hill in Camp 19. Together, we’ve created a sports pitch, a sports library, and most importantly, a safe and welcoming space where Rohingya children can play, learn, and connect.
The project combines the Club Centre with an innovative Mobile Clubhouse on wheels: sharing its time between schools in the Bangladeshi host community and the Rohingya camps, it is a true connector.
The Mobile Clubhouse is a unique bridge-building tool. Whether rolling into local schools in Cox’s Bazar or navigating the winding roads of the Rohingya camps, the PSG-branded clubhouse on wheels is instantly recognised – a beacon of colour, energy, and hope.
It carries sports equipment, broadcasts matches, and brings training sessions to children and families across the region. For those living further away from the main Club Centre in Camp 19, it’s a lifeline to play. For local Bangladeshi children, it opens the door to connection through sport. And for many girls, it’s their first chance to step onto the field.
Wherever it goes, the Mobile Clubhouse makes sure that every child, local or refugee, boy or girl, can play, unwind, and dream again.
Clubhouse agenda
The Cox’s Bazar Spirit Club Centre and Mobile Clubhouse offer a vibrant mix of activities for Rohingya and Bangladeshi children. The exemplary schedule gives a glimpse of what’s happening. It changes and adapts to the day, the weather, and most importantly, to what the children want most.
Saturday
15 November ’25
16:00
Jungle Gym Games
Come climb in our jungle gym and bring all your new friends. Location: Club Centre, Camp 19.
Saturday
15 November ’25
All day
Mobile Clubhouse
Borrow your favourite sports equipment, watch your team play live, listen to music and take part in tournaments.
Sunday
16 November ’25
12:00
Cricket Training
Join one of the country's most popular sports and become the next 'champ of the camp'. Location: Club Centre, Camp 19.
Monday
17 November ’25
15:00
Football Coaching
Learn to dribble like Martens and to run as fast as Mbappé. Location: Palong Adarsha High School.
Tuesday
18 November ’25
10:00
Sepak Takraw Training
Also called "kick volleyball" this game is not only fun to play but also incredible to watch! Location: Club Centre, Camp 19.
Wednesday
19 November ’25
13:00
Badminton Training
The badminton classes are among the highlights for many students and especially popular with the younger children. Location: Thaingkhali High School.
Sepak Takraw is one of the most popular sports of the community
Stretching circle before the fun starts
Kamal from the local KLABU team joins the action as a linesman at a local Rohingya football tournament.
The Cox's Bazar Spirit in the camp
Girls with unbeatable spirit at the club centre
A match of Rohingya favourite sport Sepak Takraw at the Club Centre
Watching games through the Mobile Clubhouse
Maya Debi's squad
The Viewing & Learning Hall, painted by the local artists of Artolution, is a space where children can watch sports and study.
More than one-third of the children that we reach through our project are girls
A game of sepak takraw facilitated by the mobile clubhouse
Sharing the fun and making friends at the club centre
THE COX'S BAZAR SPIRIT BADGE
The badge unites the Rohingya refugees and Bangladeshi locals through clasped hands. The sun symbolises hope and the waves stand for the long coastline that is a pride of the Cox's Bazar's community.
The Cox's Bazar Spirit shirt launched on International Children's Day 2023 to celebrate the unbeatable spirit of the children in Cox's Bazar.
Designed with input from the children to represent and unite the players in and around the camp, the jersey features the classic KLABU pattern in a cream and blue colorway, and three crests alongside one another – each representing the Cox’s Bazar Spirit, PSG & KLABU’s, bringing the three worlds together.
Clubshirt
Co-designed with the local community, the Cox's Bazar Spirit shirt embodies the unbeatable spirit of the children in and around the camp.
Impact so far
The Cox's Bazar Spirit is in full swing!
- Since its launch, the project has registered more than 5,800 participants in Club Centre and Mobile Clubhouse activities.
- We register on average more than 8,500 active participations at out activities every month.
- Almost half of the children who come to the club centre are young girls, defying odds and expectations to shine on the sports fields of Cox's Bazar.
- One of the girl's teams that are trained by our programme at local schools has competed at regional level and even become district champions! Sanchita Barua, one of the team's key players is now pursuing a career as a referee, following her dreams. Key player, Josna, got offered an academy space from the Bangladeshi national team.
- Motivated coaches from the Rohingya and local Bangladeshi community are directly engaged to organise the activities, creating 10 paid jobs in Cox's Bazar through our project partner Friendship NGO. UNHCR is involved as a supporter and endorser of the project.
- The active engagement of Paris Saint-Germain is a source of hope and pride for the children. PSG also helps to raise awareness and build bridges across borders.
Discover more about the Cox's Bazar Spirit, its members and impact through the stories below.
Clubhousestories
CLUBSupport
Cox's Bazar Spirit is supported by these great organisations and individuals.
The project could not have been realised without many more contributors:
Wear the Cox's Bazar Spirit
By wearing KLABU sportswear, you support refugees in Cox's Bazar and around the world.
