Swedish Professional Football Leagues

Swedish Professional Football Leagues

The Swedish Professional Football Leagues is an organisation founded in 1928 and it represents the 32 clubs in the top two divisions of the Swedish Football League System, with the aim  to promote social inclusion and equality.

191005 AIK:s Henok Goitom med en ung supporter efter fotbollsmatchen i Allsvenskan mellan AIK och Örebro den 5 oktober 2019 i Stockholm.
Foto: Simon Hastegård / Bildbyrån / 180128

Why do Swedish Professional Football Leagues engage in society? Football contributes to a better society and makes a real difference in the local area of the clubs. The organisation wants to promote clubs’ engagement and show the social benefits of football. A solid social engagement creates new possibilities for partner networking and strengthens clubs and the perception of clubs and leagues.

A developed community engagement creates the conditions so that non-profit, private and public partners can work together to create sustainable goals and long-term perspective. That is why in 2019 the Swedish Professional Football Leagues launched Fotboll och samhället, where the total community engagement from the clubs in Allsvenskan and Superettan was gathered. This means that the overall social benefits of the professional elite football are gathered in one place.

The Swedish professional Football Leauges’ description of a more inclusive society is aligned with the UN Sustainable Development Goals, especially with:

Goal 3, Good health and well being: Good public health is a fundamental basis for people’s ability to reach their full potential and contribute to the development of society.
Goal 8, Decent work and economic growth: By 2030, the goal is to significantly reduce the proportion of young people who neither work nor study.
Goal 10, reduced inequalities: An inclusive, equal and integrated society is based on the principle of everyone’s equal rights, regardless of, for example, gender, sexual orientation, ethnicity, religion or belief, disability and descent.

“When 32 teams and two national leagues work together in a society, it will not be possible to avoid what social force football is.” Beatrice Clarke, CSR & Sustainibility Manager at Swedish Professional Football Leagues.