Girls Meet Up

Challenge: Amsterdam: Wildcard – How can an AI solution solve a challenge faced by a marginalised group?
Target Group: Children and youth

The Girls Meet Up/MeidenApp pilot aimed to increase sports participation among girls aged 12–14 in Amsterdam-Zuidoost by combining digital engagement with community-based support. The key objective was to understand what motivates girls to stay active and create a playful, accessible way for them to engage with sports, both in clubs and at home.

The pilot involved four co-creation sessions with 30 participants, including local coaches and youth workers (from ZuidOost United and community organizations), focusing on how girls interact with training, what motivates them, and how to simplify the coaches’ tasks. Insights from these sessions led to the development of a web-based platform where girls could join local sports events and complete home-based “exercises” — short challenges with deadlines, descriptions, and sometimes videos.

Three structured training sessions were created, each linked to a preparatory exercise. To join a training, girls were first asked to complete the exercise by watching a short video and reading the description. This approach helped build motivation and readiness. Coaches also gained visibility into how girls completed the challenges and how quickly they responded, making it easier to track engagement and adjust support as needed.

Next steps include adding a points-based reward system and expanding the pilot with local partners.