Hadiya Hakeem is at the top of the Tornado Tower in Doha, Qatar, juggling a ball with her feet. At the dizzying height of 640 feet, the tower affords a 360-degree view of Doha, but Hadiya is immersed in her performance, letting the ball roll around her body without touching the ground.
The freestyle footballer from Kozhikode, Kerala, was recently at the Influencer Cup, representing India in the Asia Team. Freestyle football is the art of creative expression using a football, combining elements of sport and art. A freestyle footballer juggles the ball with his or her feet or any other part of the body, generally excluding the elbows and hands. “Freestyling treads the fine line between dance and sport. It is a way of self-expression with a football. However, even someone who has never played regular football can do it,” she says.
The Influencer Cup, organised by the Supreme Committee for Delivery & Legacy, Qatar Airways and Visit Qatar, had 29 football influencers from different parts of the world competing. Hosted at Stadium 974, one of the FIFA World Cup 2022 venues in Qatar, the matches had influencers showcasing their freestyling skills. “We even got to interact with renowned footballers Cafu, Tim Cahill and Yaya Toure. These are people whom I have admired since childhood, and it was a dream come true for me. I even picked up a trick or two from them.”
