Friendships, belonging and university life: how a student sports club grew into a community through shared experiences
Long after graduation, what many students remember most about university is not a lecture, an exam or a project, but the people they met along the way. Friendships and shared experiences are fundamental to university life. In international student communities, where people arrive from different countries, cultures and disciplines, opportunities to connect often become some of the most meaningful aspects of education. At Istituto Marangoni Milano Design, a student-led sports initiative offers a compelling example of how a sense of belonging can emerge through common interests and regular encounters. What began as a simple football match evolved into a regular meeting point for students across courses, year groups, and creative fields. The story of the Sports Club is ultimately about more than sport: it is about participation, connection and the relationships that help transform a school into a community.
The Student Sports Club That Turned a School Into a Community
University is often imagined as a place where connections happen automatically. Shared lectures, group projects, and long days on campus are supposed to do most of the work. Yet students frequently move through the same spaces without ever crossing paths in a meaningful way.
Different courses follow different rhythms; deadlines rarely align, and everyone's schedule is packed, with students constantly moving from one commitment to the next. Before long, it becomes easy to stay within the same familiar circle.
At Istituto Marangoni Milano Design, a group of students decided to challenge this dynamic. Founded in January 2025 by Oskar Bruun, Francesco Clementi, Luke Lacey, Noah Neby, Paul Rauscher and Stefano Rivera, with the support of the Student Desk, the Sports Club was never intended to become a large organisation. It began with a practical need shared by many students and a simple question: how do you create more opportunities for people to meet each other?
As co-founder Stefano Rivera recalls, “The Sports Club started from a very simple idea: we wanted us, students, to have a reason to meet outside the classroom. Sport became the easiest way to bring people together.”
The choice was a natural one. In a school that brings together students from different countries, backgrounds, and creative disciplines, finding common ground is not always immediate. Sport, however, lowers many of those barriers. Once a game begins, it matters little whether someone studies fashion, business or design, and neither language nor existing friendships determines who takes part. Showing up is often enough.
Why Sport Makes It Easier to Make Friends at University
The first football match took place on 23 January 2025. At the time, it was simply an opportunity to spend time together away from classes, presentations, and portfolio reviews. In retrospect, however, it marked the beginning of something that would gradually grow beyond the game itself.
As more students joined, new activities emerged naturally, and the club expanded from football into basketball, beach volleyball, and, more recently, padel and running. While the program evolved, its original aim remained unchanged: to create opportunities for students to connect beyond academic routines.
The number of matches played tells only part of the story. What truly gave the Sports Club its value were the conversations that happened between matches, the friendships that formed over time, and the connections that developed among people who might otherwise never have met.
Few people are better placed to reflect on the club’s impact than Stefano Rivera. The Italo-Peruvian alumnus, who graduated from Istituto Marangoni Milano Design in 2025, now works as a visual designer and art director, and has already earned international recognition, including a Wood Pencil at London’s D&AD Awards. When asked about the Sports Club, his reflection centres on something fundamental: “The Sports Club helped me meet people I probably would never have spoken to during a normal school day.”
In an international student community, that kind of connection can make all the difference. When people arrive from different parts of the world, they naturally gravitate towards those they meet first. Expanding those circles takes time and, sometimes, a reason. The Sports Club offered that reason, creating a setting where introductions felt effortless and new connections could develop without the pressure that often accompanies more formal situations.
How a Football Match Became a Student Community
There was no single moment when the initiative suddenly transformed into a community. Instead, a sense of belonging developed gradually, becoming more visible as the club continued to evolve. One milestone, however, stands out—and, surprisingly, it arrived as a shirt.
“Creating the team shirt was an important moment for us. It gave the club a visible identity and made students feel part of a true community,” Rivera explains.
On the surface, it might seem like a small detail. Yet a sense of community is often built through shared symbols, and the shirt gave students something tangible to rally around. That piece of sportswear became a manifestation of a group that had come together through a common experience and wanted others to be part of it too.
Today, the Sports Club is much more than a weekly sporting activity. It is a space where students from different courses and year groups can recognise one another, reconnect outside class, and feel part of something that extends beyond their immediate academic experience.
Why Student Belonging Has Become Essential to University Life
In many ways, the story of the Istituto Marangoni Sports Club reflects a broader shift in how new generations view university life. Academic achievement remains central, yet there is a growing awareness that the most meaningful aspects of student life often emerge through the relationships and experiences that develop alongside it: the people you meet unexpectedly, the friendships that form over time, and the communities built around shared interests rather than shared coursework.
Looking at the Sports Club today, it’s easy to focus on its expansion, the range of activities, or the number of students involved. But what feels most significant is the purpose that continues to drive it.
Creating a sense of community requires intention and a willingness to bring people together. At Istituto Marangoni Milano Design, that spirit is visible in countless ways—through activations, events and student-led initiatives. The Sports Club is one of them. What began with a football match has grown into a community where participation feels natural, and university life is richer, more open, and more connected.