For the love of the game

As part of the first UEFA Grassroots Day, three of European football's star names – Raúl González, Luís Figo and Fernando Hierro – have been sharing their memories of the early days in their illustrious careers.

The trio were key members of Real Madrid CF's UEFA Champions League-winning side in 2002 – Raúl and Hierro also featuring in the victories of 1998 and 2000 – but in a press conference at the Santiago Bernabéu they looked back even further, to their earliest football experiences that set them on a path to greatness.

"Like everybody else, I started playing on the streets and on dirt pitches," said former Spain defender Hierro, now technical director of the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF). "I then moved to futsal, then indoor football and finally eleven-a-side football."

His ex team-mates told similar back stories, with Madrid striker Raúl explaining: "I played in the streets and at school with the kids from my part of town. At school we played only football in the breaks. Just as Fernando did, I started playing for a team aged 11, then joined my first club and that led to real football."

As a former Portuguese international, Figo grew up in a different country yet his first steps as a footballer were all but identical, the now retired midfielder saying: "Whenever we found a spot of land that was free we started kicking a ball around – one against one, two on two, four v four. I started playing for a small club close to my home and spent a year there before I signed for Sporting Clube [de Portugal]."

Although their footballing achievements outstripped those of their childhood friends, all three were in full agreement that the social benefits of the sport were just as significant. "We're quite aware of the fact our matches, actions and words are followed closely by many, many people," Raúl said.

"Kids are obsessed with football, they imitate everything – even your hair – and players have a big responsibility. Playing football is fabulous but we must get across the message of fair play to youngsters. It's about having fun but the most important thing is to shape them as a person. Football can help change your life – for the better."

The theme was picked up by Figo, now an ambassador for FC Internazionale Milano with particular emphasis on the grassroots game. "Not everyone will make it to the top but when it comes to training, education and personality, football can give you something for the future," he said.

"Inter are involved in creating opportunities, not just for those who will become stars but for anyone who wants the chance to play. Inter have a social programme, Inter Campus, which is run in 20 countries around the world for precisely this reason. We want to attract kids from difficult backgrounds to our camps to give them the chance of a better future. The idea is to include everyone to give them hope for the future."