The Butterfly Cup is a soccer tournament organized in Shanghai, China, by the Rotary Club and DEBRA, a charity that supports children and families affected by epidermolysis bullosa. The event is a fundraiser to help Chinese children suffering from this rare and incurable genetic disease, which causes the skin to become extreme fragile, like a butterfly’s wing. The families of children affected by epidermolysis bullosa in China must provide constant and very expensive care.
Soccer to help children with epidermolysis bullosa
Having taken part every year since the Butterfly Cup started in 2019, Lesaffre’s China subsidiary was one of 32 companies at the tournament. The money raised through the teams’ registrations fees, the Rotary Club network and various activities organized around the event is donated to DEBRA, which provides families with dressings, contributes to research, and trains health professionals about the disease.
“We put together a squad of about 15 French and Chinese employees from every department of the company: logistics, production, finance… and all of them were highly motivated. In fact, every year, our players train in their spare time in the run-up to the event,” explains Nicolas Leclercq, Data Science Manager at Lesaffre Management Shanghai. Training for the tournament and then playing the matches is an ideal way to bring the employees of Lesaffre’s Chinese subsidiary together for sport and for a good cause. And although taking part is the most important thing, the Lesaffre team was proud to be runners-up in the intermediate category for the first time.
A commitment that reflects Lesaffre values
Always ready to support good causes, the Group is actively involved with various charitable causes in the countries where it operates around the world – thanks to the ready willingness of its employees to take part.