Being a young adult in a city can be lonely, no matter how many people surround us. The opportunities to socialise at work have diminished, and a decline of social opportunities for those in their mid-to-late twenties, even in major cities, hinders the growth of new connections.
Almost half of Edinburgh’s population is aged 18-44, and despite the city being a hub of culture and creativity, they are not immune to loneliness.
One of Edinburgh’s young adults who has faced loneliness is Jamie Curry. The 30-year-old Leither fell in love with Edinburgh as an undergraduate. She found herself back in the city while working a remote job, and after two years of spending more time connecting with her laptop than other humans, she took action.
Inspired by a friend who had set up a women’s football team in Manchester, Jamie endeavoured to do the same in the Scottish capital… despite never playing football before.
Jokes FC was born in February 2024, setting themselves out as a ‘Leith-based friendly footy team for women, trans & non-binary people’. Jamie marketed the new club via WhatsApp groups and word of mouth, as well as a shoutout on the radio.
Thinking back to the first session, Jamie remembers having “no idea what would happen”. She was surprised by the number of people who turned up, initially thinking it “would just be my friends and girlfriend’s friends who’d practically been forced to attend!”
The inaugural session of Jokes FC was attended by a diverse group, all of whom Jamie was quick to point out still regularly attend a year later. Having a sports group exclusively for women and non-binary people was important to her: “Some of my friends wanted to bring their male friends – I politely declined – they have plenty of their own amateur football clubs to go to!”
Jamie wanted to create a place for those who haven’t always felt welcomed in sports.
“I gave a hockey club a go, as I played while I was at school, but when I turned up it was quite an intimidating atmosphere; no one really spoke to me, and I could tell that everyone there was playing at a higher level than me.”
When setting up Jokes FC, Jamie didn’t want anyone else to feel like she did: “I wanted something a bit more chilled than that.”
One of the originals-turned-social-media managers for the club, Lauren McCarthy, says that, despite being “categorically shit at football”, she still enjoys going for a kickabout every so often and, of course, having a coffee catch-up afterwards.
“I just remember at the first session feeling like I hadn’t run around like that since I was a child; I had so much fun,” Lauren said. “I still don’t really know the rules, but that’s the beauty of it – no one minds, and there’s just no pressure.”
Jokes FC enabled her to gain more than just a fun Saturday morning each week. It added a whole new social circle of queer people to her life.
“I had just come out and started dating my girlfriend. It was nice for me to be surrounded by similar people. People who I could identify with for the first time in my life.”
The club is a safe and fun environment for people to come together in a city where they may otherwise feel lonely in. It’s a way to make new connections and to be active on the weekends.
Jamie says, “For me it was important that there was a really low barrier to entry for people; we want to make it easy for them to join and keep coming.”
“But most importantly, we want to create a feeling of community and camaraderie… which we think we’ve managed to achieve!”
In terms of goals, they are trying to keep pressure low but have entered an amateur 5-a-side tournament in the spring. Jokes FC are also fundraising to buy their own training equipment and help members buy football boots. Check them out on Instagram @jokes__fc if you want to get involved.
