Edin Džeko's emotional letter to Bosnian children

Veteran Bosnian footballer Edin Džeko has penned an emotional letter to the children of Bosnia and Herzegovina, sharing a message of hope and resilience. Published on the media platform The Players' Tribune, Džeko's letter begins with a powerful affirmation: "Nothing is impossible. Nothing."

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Nothing is impossible. Nothing.

Džeko, 40, reflected on the harrowing experience of the Sarajevo Siege, which began when he was six years old. He vividly recalls hiding with his mother in a shoe cupboard as the first sirens wailed, marking the start of a four-year ordeal. Though young, he understood the constant fear and the feeling of unsafety, even within their small, shared apartment where 15 people slept on the floor.

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I don't like talking about the Siege of Sarajevo, but it's important for you to understand what it was really like. I was six years old when it started. I remember my mother grabbing me and us hiding behind the shoe cabinet when the first sirens went off. That was the first day. It lasted four years.

He described the longing of children to play football outside, contrasted with the daily reality of seeing innocent people being taken to hospitals by ambulances. Džeko explained that when the situation momentarily calmed, mothers would allow children to play in the neighborhood. He also spoke about his father's significant role in his life, remembering his advice to "be kind, treat everyone the same, no matter where they are from or what they do." His father, a former lower-league footballer himself, was Džeko's hero, often giving him a banana and wishing him good luck before games.

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We wanted to play football outside, but every day we saw innocent people being taken to the hospital by ambulances. So how do you keep a child in a house for four years? Of course, you can't, and our elders knew that. When it was rarely calm, my mother would let us out. We would go out and play football with the other children in the neighborhood.

Džeko, who admired Ukrainian player Andriy Shevchenko, shared his childhood dream of playing for Zeljeznicar and later in Italy's Serie A. He emphasized the ethnic diversity within Bosnia and Herzegovina, urging the children to "never forget where you come from. You are Bosnian. The world is at your feet." He concluded with a heartfelt message of love for all the children, regardless of their religious or ethnic background.

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Be kind, treat everyone the same, no matter where they are from or what they do. I never forgot that.