2018 FIFA World Cup: Team of refuges rising in Brazilian ranks

World
Europe

02:41

We all know World Cup is a showcase for national pride. People around the globe root for their respective sides. But football can also bring together those who don't have a country and no one knows that more than a team of refugees competing in Brazil's domestic ranks, who are also trying to rebuild their lives in a new land. Lucrecia Franco tells their story.

They share a passion for football and the dream of a better future, and they are getting there, one kick at a time. These are the Black Pearls -- a football club that started as a refugee project run by the Brazilian NGO, Viva Rio. It was founded in Haiti after the devastating 2010 earthquake that killed more than 200,000 people.

JONATHAN SOLON BLACK PEARLS ASSISTANT COACH "It was very difficult to leave, but now I am here working as assistant coach for the Black Pearls, and I am very happy."

There are two football academies, one in Haiti for children, and this one in Rio that offers training and education for promising, mostly-Haitian refugee players, and at-risk Brazilians.

LUCRECIA FRANCO RIO DE JANEIRO "According to Brazil's Football Confederation, clubs cannot have more than five foreign players, but it has made an exception for these refugees. They are all now counted as if they were Brazilian athletes."

And they are good. Last year, the Under-20 team did not lose a game. The professional team lost only one. Both moved from third division to second in the Rio de Janeiro league.

WESLEY ASSIS BLACK PEARLS COACH "I tell them it is a privilege to be here in the land of football, but it is not just them learning from us, we are also learning from them because they have such great potential."

Training is rigorous but attracting another group of refugees who are fleeing into Brazil. Most recently, this Venezuelan, Juan Andres Rodrigues, was added to the team.

JUAN ANDRES RODRIGUES VENEZUELAN REFUGEE PLAYER "The situation in my country is not good, but I was lucky to join the Black Pearls, a top team. It is a great opportunity to grow in the sport."

If called up, the refugee players will represent their own countries in international competition, but they do not hesitate when asked which country they want to see win this year's World Cup. The World Cup, of course, is the stuff of dreams ... but the next goal for these footballers -- reaching Brazil's first division. Lucrecia Franco, CGTN, Rio de Janeiro.